Following a taste of world peace thanks to Pokémon Go, there's no question that the creature-catching series stands as one of the most mainstream video games in existence. Pikachu is every bit as recognizable as Mickey Mouse, perhaps even more. The continued pandemonium around card prices ensures near-daily Pokémon news stories. It would be difficult to find a pocket monster game that didn't sell at least a few million units. Remarkably, unofficial Pokémon games go viral annually.
However despite that ubiquity and popularity, some Pokémon games that remain overlooked. These represent games that failed to receive their fair shake, or were overshadowed by the hype of the core series. They're Pokémon games released on ill-fated consoles or online offerings, or were pioneering attempts onto different formats. They're often also Pokémon games that probably would have blossomed if they had received follow-ups or modern remakes. With these criteria in mind, this list will not be yet another reminder for Pokémon Conquest or the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon series. We're going beneath the surface.
Still, you may already know about these Pokémon games. So, before rearranging your glasses and writing 'Actually,' we can all acknowledge that these are Pokémon games for people with refined tastes, agreed?
Pokemon Ranch: The Relaxed Precursor
An excessive number of Pokémon games emphasize the combat aspect of the series, and far too few of them focus on the everyday aspects that would come with owning a pet. Admittedly, modern titles include minor mechanics like these in modern games—you can play with your monsters in camps. But I am longing for a Pokémon game more in the style of Nintendogs or The Sims.
My Pokemon Ranch (2008) for the Wii is not that game. The downloadable-only title is best seen as the precursor to Pokémon Home; that is, as a repository to store monsters from different games. Reviews from its release said Ranch was a bad if not truly ugly game. I'm not here to dispute these notions, but it compels me to say Ranch might be the closest we've come to a slice-of-life Pokémon game.
True to its title, the game is set on a ranch where your personal Miis—imagine this—simply hang out with your Pokémon pals. The activities with Pokémon were basic, and a lot of the appeal was watching what your monsters might do when not forced into cockfighting. In a just world, Pokémon Ranch would have been the beginning of a beautiful franchise built on the simple pleasures of living your life with a small creature. But since The Pokémon Company can collect a fee for Pokémon Home now, I'm guessing we will not get a Pokémon Ranch game realized to its fullest potential. One might cry 'save us, Pokémon Pokopia!' but it's also known that the Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive is just as much a puzzler as it is a life simulation.
Ranch came out well before Stardew Valley sparked the lasting craze of cozy games. It was before the rise of idle games, and the Let's Play normalization of watching games you aren't actively controlling. Most people never understood that Ranch's proposal to watch your creatures as much as you interact with them wasn't to hide a shallow core. In truth, Ranch's meticulous design was so remarkable, a Twitch stream dedicated to running the game continuously. The streamer who runs the channel states that, after almost twenty years of experiencing the game, he even now has not encountered everything that is in it. Justice for Pokémon Ranch: nobody understood you in 2008.
Pokémon Duel: The Tactical Board Game Gone
Are you aware that Pokemon once had an licensed board game with action figures? Pokémon Duel was the 2016 effort to adapt the tabletop experience in a more accessible format. Duel was also, unfortunately, one of Pokémon's first ventures into the world of freemium phone games. Duel had the hallmarks of a gacha game where players could spend for advantage—and there was incentive to do so, given the lengthy grind for new pieces.
These questionable mechanics obfuscated a tragic reality: Pokémon Duel was an excellent strategy game with Duel today. "I can’t express how much I loved and miss this game," a YouTube comment reads, seven years after Duel's servers were shut down. "Honestly I think this game was superior to TCG Pocket in terms of complexity, accessibility, design, and features in general," a user wrote. "I truly believe if it launched now people would be playing it more than GO and Pocket combined."
Regrettably, Duel's initial launch was marred by server issues. Technical problems, alongside Duel's scummy business model, gave people little reason to come back. If, by some miracle, The Pokémon Company chose to resurrect this franchise, it's unclear things would end better. The unique board structure made for a fantastic tactical experience for the handful of players who played Duel, but that board is also a intimidating visual mess.
Pokemon: Magikarp Jump: The Silly Gem
Man, why don't more Pokémon games loosen up a little and have some fun? Magikarp Jump (2017) was a rare instance of The Pokémon Company giving its blessing a game with a premise so absurd, it was bordering on shitpost. And when we're dealing with a franchise where trainers go out with a full belt of ineffective monsters who literally can't do anything, it's surprising we don't have more Pokémon games that poke fun at themselves.
Within Magikarp Jump, the player is tasked with raising the best possible version of the notorious fish. I'm not talking about a Magikarp that can kick your butt. These are 'Magikarp raised to enter contests to see who can jump the highest. One drawback is how Magikarp Jump, like many phone games, forces the player to pause before they can train their Magikarp further. But it is clear throughout the experience that the developers appreciated and got the community love around Magikarp.
This was most apparent than in Jump's brutal random occurrences, where your Magikarp was just as likely to improve as it was to get snatched by a Pidgeotto. Beyond the clever dialogue, Magikarp Jump also tried out other things I wish the mainline games would do, like offering a wide variety of the same type of monster. It's understood it's not feasible for any Pokémon game to have dozens of variations for a compendium of over a thousand creatures, as Magikarp Jump does... but we can hope.
Magikarp Jump was not a especially complex or profound game, but the kernels of genius were there. Witty events with unpredictable results that forever alter how you can train a companion also describe the excellent Mewgenics. And I'm just saying: Mewgenics will almost certainly be in the running when Game of the Year season rolls around.
With numerous mainline entries and spin-offs, it's probable that I omitted that one Pokémon game you totally love but contend that not nearly enough people played. It's acknowledged that some people look back on games like Pokemon Ranger or Pokemon Pinball with affection despite argu
