In the wake of a vision of global harmony courtesy of Pokémon Go, there's no question that the monster collecting series stands as one of the most mainstream gaming titles around. The iconic Pikachu is every bit as recognizable as Disney's mascot, perhaps even more. The ongoing pandemonium surrounding card prices ensures almost daily Pokemon headlines. It would be hard-pressed to find a Pokémon game that failed to move at least a couple million copies. Remarkably, unofficial Pokémon games go viral annually.
However in spite of that pervasiveness and popularity, some Pokémon games that are totally overlooked. These are titles that didn't get their fair shake, or were buried by the hype of the mainline series. They're Pokémon games stuck on doomed consoles or online offerings, or were early forays onto different formats. They're often also Pokémon games that might have blossomed if they ever got follow-ups or contemporary re-releases. Considering these factors, we won't be offering yet another recommendation for Pokemon Conquest or the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon series. We're going beneath the surface.
Nevertheless, these might be these Pokémon games. Therefore, prior to 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 Forerunner
Too many Pokémon games emphasize the combat element of the series, and not nearly enough of them focus on the everyday realities that would come with living with a companion. Sure, there are minor mechanics like these in recent entries—players may 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 Nintendo Wii isn't it. The downloadable-only title is best seen as the precursor to Pokemon Home; that is, as a storage system to store monsters from different games. Critical reception from its launch said Ranch was a bad if not outright hideous game. It's not my goal to dispute these notions, but it behooves me to say Ranch might be the closest we've ever gotten to a slice-of-life Pokémon game.
As the name suggests, the game is set on a ranch where your Mii avatars—imagine this—just relax with your pals. The activities with Pokémon were basic, and a significant part of the appeal was watching what your monsters might do when they're not being forced into battle. Ideally, Pokémon Ranch would have been the start of a beautiful franchise built on the simple pleasures of coexisting with a small creature. However, because The Pokémon Company can collect a fee for Pokémon Home now, I'm guessing we will never see a Pokémon Ranch game realized to its fullest potential. I'd say 'save us, Pokémon Pokopia!' but it's also known that the upcoming Switch exclusive is as much a puzzler as it is a life simulation.
Ranch was released well before Stardew Valley kicked off the enduring trend of cozy games. It was before the rise of passive games, and the Let's Play normalization of watching games you aren't actively controlling. Many never understood that Ranch's proposal to watch your critters as much as you play with them didn't mask a shallow core. In truth, Ranch's meticulous design was so remarkable, there's a live stream focused on broadcasting the game continuously. The streamer who runs the channel states that, after nearly two decades of experiencing the game, he even now has not seen everything that is in it. Justice for Pokémon Ranch: nobody understood you in 2008.
Pokémon Duel: The Tactical Board Game Lost
Are you aware that Pokemon once had an licensed board game with action figures? Pokemon Duel was the 2016 effort to digitize the tabletop experience in a more accessible form. Duel was also, unfortunately, one of Pokémon's earliest forays into the world of freemium 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 lengthy grind for new figures.
All of these poor design choices obfuscated a sad truth: Pokémon Duel was an superb tactical game with Duel today. "I can’t express how much I adored and miss this game," one YouTube comment reads, seven years after Duel's servers were pulled. "Honestly I think this game was superior to TCG Pocket in terms of depth, approachability, game design, and content in general," another commenter wrote. "I truly believe if it launched now people would be engaging with it more than GO and Pocket together."
Unfortunately, Duel's initial launch was marred by server issues. Technical problems, alongside Duel's predatory business model, gave people few incentives to come back. If, by some miracle, The Pokémon Company decided to revive this franchise, it's unclear things would play out differently. The unusual game board made for a fantastic tactical experience for the handful of players who played Duel, but that playing field is also a daunting eyesore.
Pokemon: Magikarp Jump: The Absurd Experiment
Wow, why don't more Pokémon games relax a little and have some enjoyment? Magikarp Jump (2017) was a rare instance of The Pokémon Company approving a game with a concept so silly, it was bordering on shitpost. And when we're dealing with a franchise where trainers go out with a team of useless monsters who simply cannot do anything, I'm shocked we don't have more Pokémon games that poke fun at themselves.
Within Magikarp Jump, the player is tasked with raising the ultimate version of the notorious 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. One drawback is how Magikarp Jump, like many mobile games, forces the player to wait before they can train their Magikarp further. But it is evident throughout the experience that Select Button appreciated and got the community love around Magikarp.
This was most apparent than in Jump's merciless random occurrences, where your Magikarp was just as likely to improve as it was to get snatched by a Pidgeotto. Beyond the great writing, Magikarp Jump also experimented with other things one might wish the core series would do, like offering a diverse range of the same type of monster. It's understood it's not feasible for any Pokémon game to have 30 different 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 deep game, but the seeds of brilliance were there. Witty events with outrageous outcomes that forever alter how you can raise a pet also describe the excellent Mewgenics. And I'm just saying: Mewgenics will likely be in the running when 2026 GOTY season rolls around.
Given dozens of core games and derivative titles, it's probable that I omitted that one Pokémon game you totally love but argue that not nearly enough people played. I know that some people remember games like Pokémon Ranger or Pokemon Pinball fondly despite argu
