Following a taste of global harmony thanks to Pokémon Go, there's no question that the creature-catching series stands as one of the most ubiquitous gaming titles in existence. Pikachu is every bit as recognizable as Disney's mascot, if not more so. The persistent frenzy around trading card values ensures near-daily Pokemon news stories. You'd be difficult to find a pocket monster game that failed to move at least a few million copies. Remarkably, unofficial Pokémon games achieve popularity every year.
However despite that ubiquity and fame, some Pokémon games that are totally underappreciated. These represent games that didn't get their fair shake, or were overshadowed under the hype of the mainline series. These are Pokémon games stuck on ill-fated platforms or online offerings, or were early forays onto different formats. Frequently, they are Pokémon games that might have blossomed if they ever got sequels or contemporary re-releases. With these criteria in mind, we won't be offering just one more recommendation for Pokemon Conquest or the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon series. We're digging deep.
Still, these might be these Pokémon games. So, before adjusting your spectacles and typing 'Well,' we can all acknowledge that these are Pokémon games for people with discerning palates, shall we?
Pokémon Ranch: The Cozy Forerunner
An excessive number of Pokémon games focus on the combat aspect of the series, and not nearly enough of them highlight the everyday aspects that would come with living with a pet. Sure, modern titles include small features like these in modern games—players may play with your monsters in camps. But I am dying for a Pokémon game more in the style of Nintendogs or The Sims.
My Pokémon Ranch (2008) for the Nintendo Wii isn't it. The downloadable-only title is best seen as the antecedent to Pokemon Home; that is, as a storage system to store monsters from various titles. Critical reception from its release noted Ranch was a bad if not outright hideous game. It's not my goal to argue against these claims, but it compels me to say Ranch might be the nearest we've ever gotten to a everyday life Pokémon game.
As the name suggests, the game is set on a ranch where your personal Miis—imagine this—simply hang out with your Pokémon pals. The interactions with Pokémon were simple, and a significant part of the draw was observing what your monsters might do when they're not being forced into battle. In a just world, Pokémon Ranch would have been the beginning of a beautiful franchise built on the daily joys of living your life with a small creature. However, because The Pokémon Company can collect a fee for Pokémon Home now, it's likely we will not get a Pokémon Ranch game realized to its fullest potential. I'd say 'save us, Pokémon Pokopia!' but I also know that the Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive is as much a puzzle game as it is a life sim.
Ranch was released well before Stardew Valley sparked the lasting craze of cozy games. It was before the proliferation of passive games, and the Let's Play normalization of viewing games you aren't playing. Most people never realized that Ranch's concept to observe your creatures as much as you play with them wasn't to hide a shallow core. In actuality, Ranch's attention to detail was so remarkable, a Twitch stream focused on running the game continuously. The individual who operates the channel states that, after almost twenty years of experiencing the game, he still has not encountered all that is in it. Justice for Pokémon Ranch: nobody understood you in 2008.
Pokemon Duel: The Tactical Board Game Lost
Are you aware that Pokémon once had an licensed board game with miniatures? Pokémon Duel was the 2016 attempt to adapt the tabletop experience in a more approachable format. Duel was also, unfortunately, one of Pokémon's first ventures into the world of free-to-play phone games. Duel had the hallmarks of a gacha title where players could pay to win—and there was motivation to do so, given the slow progression for new pieces.
These questionable mechanics masked a tragic reality: Pokémon Duel was an superb strategy game with Duel today. "I can’t express how much I loved and miss this game," a YouTube comment states, seven years after Duel's servers were pulled. "Honestly I think this game was better than TCG Pocket in terms of complexity, approachability, design, and content in general," a user wrote. "I am convinced if it launched now people would be engaging with it more than GO and Pocket combined."
Unfortunately, Duel's initial launch was marred by server issues. Bugs, alongside Duel's scummy business model, gave people few incentives to come back. Should a revival occur, The Pokémon Company chose to resurrect this franchise, it's unclear things would play out differently. The unusual game board made for a fantastic strategic challenge for the few folks who played Duel, but that board is also a daunting eyesore.
Pokémon: Magikarp Jump: The Absurd Experiment
Man, why don't more Pokémon games relax 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 silly, it was verging on shitpost. And when we're dealing with a franchise where trainers venture forth with a team of useless monsters who literally can't do anything, I'm shocked we don't have more Pokémon games that laugh at themselves.
Within Magikarp Jump, the player is charged with breeding the ultimate version of the infamous fish. This isn't about a Magikarp that can kick your butt. These are 'karp raised to enter competitions to see who can flop the highest. I'm not a fan is how Magikarp Jump, like many phone games, forces the player to wait before they can improve their Magikarp further. But it is evident throughout the experience that Select Button loved and understood the fan culture around Magikarp.
Nowhere was this more evident than in Jump's brutal random events, where your Magikarp was just as likely to improve as it was to get eaten by a Pidgeotto. Apart from the great writing, Magikarp Jump also experimented with other things one might wish the core series would do, like offering a wide variety of the same species of monster. I know it's not feasible for any Pokémon game to have dozens of variations for a roster of over a thousand creatures, as Magikarp Jump does... but we can hope.
Magikarp Jump was not a particularly complex or profound game, but the kernels of genius were there. Sharply written events with outrageous outcomes that permanently influence how you can train a companion also describe the excellent Mewgenics. And I'm just saying: Mewgenics will almost certainly be in the conversation when Game of the Year season arrives.
With numerous mainline entries and spin-offs, chances are that I omitted that particular Pokémon game you absolutely adore but argue that not nearly enough people played. It's acknowledged that some people remember games like Pokémon Ranger or Pokemon Pinball fondly despite argu
