Following a glimpse 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 around. Pikachu is just as recognizable as Mickey Mouse, if not more so. The persistent pandemonium around trading card values ensures near-daily Pokemon news stories. You'd be difficult to find a Pokémon game that failed to move at least a few million units. Even, fan-made Pokémon games achieve popularity annually.
However despite that ubiquity and fame, there are still Pokémon games that are totally overlooked. These are games that didn't get their fair shake, or were overshadowed under the excitement of the core series. These are Pokémon games stuck on doomed consoles or online offerings, or were pioneering attempts onto different formats. They're often also Pokémon games that probably would have flourished if they had received sequels or modern remakes. Considering these factors, we won't be offering yet another recommendation for Pokémon Conquest or the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon series. We're going beneath the surface.
Nevertheless, you may already know about these Pokémon games. Therefore, prior to adjusting your spectacles and typing 'Well,' we can all acknowledge that these are Pokémon games for people with refined tastes, agreed?
Pokémon Ranch: The Cozy Forerunner
Too many Pokémon games focus on the combat element of the series, and not nearly enough of them focus on the ordinary realities that would come with living with a pet. Admittedly, modern titles include minor mechanics like these in modern games—you can pet, and feed your monsters in camps. However, I'm longing for a Pokémon game more in the vein of Nintendogs or The Sims.
My Pokemon Ranch (2008) for the Wii is not that game. The digital-only title is best seen as the antecedent to Pokémon Home; that is, as a storage system to store monsters from different games. Critical reception from its release said Ranch was a bad if not outright hideous game. I'm not here to argue against these notions, 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 farm where your personal Miis—get this—just relax with your pals. The activities with Pokémon were simple, and a significant part of the appeal was observing what your monsters might do when not forced into battle. Ideally, Pokémon Ranch would have been the beginning of a wonderful 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, I'm guessing we will never see a Pokémon Ranch game developed to its complete potential. I'd say 'save us, Pokémon Pokopia!' but it's also known that the upcoming Switch exclusive is just as much a puzzler as it is a life simulation.
Ranch was released well before Stardew Valley sparked the enduring trend of comfort gaming. It was before the rise of idle games, and the Let's Play normalization of viewing games you aren't actively controlling. Many never understood that Ranch's proposal to watch your creatures as much as you play with them didn't mask a lack of substance. In actuality, Ranch's meticulous design was so remarkable, there's a Twitch stream dedicated to broadcasting the game continuously. The streamer who runs the channel maintains that, after almost twenty years of experiencing the game, he even now has not seen all that is in it. Justice for Pokémon Ranch: nobody understood you in 2008.
Pokemon Duel: The Tactical Tabletop Game Lost
Are you aware that Pokémon once had an licensed board game with action figures? Pokémon Duel was the 2016 attempt to digitize the tabletop experience in a more accessible form. Duel was also, unfortunately, one of Pokémon's earliest 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 lengthy grind for new pieces.
All of these questionable mechanics obfuscated a tragic reality: Pokémon Duel was an excellent strategy game with Duel today. "I can’t express how much I adored and miss this game," one YouTube comment states, years after Duel's servers were pulled. "Truly I think this game was superior to TCG Pocket in terms of complexity, accessibility, design, and features in general," another commenter wrote. "I am convinced if it came out now people would be playing it more than GO and Pocket combined."
Regrettably, Duel's initial launch was plagued with connectivity problems. Bugs, alongside Duel's predatory monetization model, gave people few incentives to return. If, by some miracle, The Pokémon Company chose to resurrect this franchise, I'm still not certain things would end better. The unusual board structure made for a great tactical experience for the few folks who played Duel, but that playing field is also a intimidating eyesore.
Pokemon: Magikarp Jump: The Whimsical Experiment
Man, why don't more Pokémon games loosen up a little and have some fun? Magikarp Jump (2017) was a uncommon case of The Pokémon Company approving a game with a concept so silly, it was verging on shitpost. And when we're dealing with a franchise where trainers venture forth with a full belt of useless monsters who simply cannot do anything, it's surprising we don't have more Pokémon games that laugh at themselves.
In Magikarp Jump, the player is tasked with breeding the best possible version of the notorious fish. This isn't about a Magikarp that can win battles. 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, requires the player to wait before they can improve their Magikarp further. But it is clear throughout the experience that Select Button loved and understood the community love around Magikarp.
Nowhere was this more evident than in Jump's brutal random occurrences, where your Magikarp was just as likely to raise its stats as it was to get eaten by a Pidgeotto. Apart from the great writing, Magikarp Jump also experimented with other things I wish the mainline games would do, like offering a diverse range of the same species of monster. I know it's not feasible for any Pokémon game to have 30 different colorings and patterns for a roster of over a thousand creatures, as Magikarp Jump does... but we can hope.
Magikarp Jump was not a especially sophisticated or deep game, but the seeds of brilliance were there. Witty events with unpredictable results that permanently influence 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.
With numerous core games and spin-offs, chances are that I omitted that one Pokémon game you absolutely adore but contend that too few people played. It's acknowledged that some people look back on games like Pokémon Ranger or Pokemon Pinball fondly despite argu
