Following a taste of world peace courtesy of Pokémon Go, it's undeniable that the monster collecting franchise stands as one of the most mainstream video games around. The iconic Pikachu is every bit as identifiable as Disney's mascot, if not more so. The continued excitement surrounding trading card values guarantees almost daily Pokemon news stories. It would be difficult to find a pocket monster game that failed to move at least a couple million units. Remarkably, fan-made Pokémon games go viral annually.
Yet despite that ubiquity and fame, there are still Pokémon games that remain underappreciated. These represent titles that didn't get their proper due, or were buried under the excitement of the core series. They're Pokémon games stuck on ill-fated platforms or services, or were pioneering attempts onto different formats. Frequently, they are Pokémon games that might have flourished if they had received sequels or modern remakes. 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.
Nevertheless, these might be 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, shall we?
Pokémon Ranch: The Relaxed Precursor
Too many Pokémon games focus on the combat element of the series, and not nearly enough of them focus on the ordinary aspects that would come with owning a companion. Admittedly, modern titles include small features like these in modern games—you can play with your monsters in camps. However, I'm dying for a Pokémon game more in the vein of Nintendogs or The Sims.
My Pokemon Ranch (2008) for the Nintendo Wii is not that game. The downloadable-only title is most accurately viewed as the precursor to Pokémon Home; that is, as a repository to hold monsters from various titles. Reviews from its release said Ranch was a poor if not truly ugly game. I'm not here to argue against these claims, but it behooves me to say Ranch might be the closest we've ever gotten to a everyday life Pokémon game.
As the name suggests, the game is set on a farm where your Mii avatars—imagine this—just relax with your pals. The activities with Pokémon were simple, and a significant part of the draw was watching what your monsters might do when not forced into cockfighting. Ideally, Pokémon Ranch would have been the beginning of a wonderful franchise built on the simple pleasures of living your life with a small creature. However, because The Pokémon Company can charge a subscription for Pokémon Home now, I'm guessing we will never see a Pokémon Ranch game realized 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 long before Stardew Valley kicked off the lasting craze of cozy games. It was prior to the proliferation of idle games, and the video playthrough normalization of viewing games you aren't actively controlling. Many never realized that Ranch's concept to observe your critters as much as you interact with them wasn't to hide a lack of substance. In actuality, Ranch's attention to detail was so remarkable, there's a live stream dedicated to broadcasting the game 24/7. The individual who runs the channel states that, after almost twenty years of playing the game, he even now has not seen everything that is in it. Justice for Pokémon Ranch: no one knew what to do with you in 2008.
Pokémon Duel: The Tactical Board Game Gone
Did you know that Pokémon once had an licensed board game with miniatures? Pokemon Duel was the 2016 effort to adapt the tabletop experience in a more accessible format. Duel was also, sadly, one of Pokémon's first ventures into the world of free-to-play 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 slow progression for new pieces.
All of these questionable mechanics masked a sad truth: Pokémon Duel was an superb strategy game with Duel anymore. "Words cannot describe how much I adored and miss this game," one YouTube comment reads, seven years after Duel's servers were shut down. "Truly I think this game was superior to TCG Pocket in terms of complexity, accessibility, design, and content in general," another commenter declared. "I truly believe if it launched now people would be playing it more than GO and Pocket together."
Unfortunately, Duel's early release was marred by connectivity problems. Technical problems, alongside Duel's predatory business model, gave people few incentives to come back. If, by some miracle, The Pokémon Company chose to resurrect this franchise, I'm still not certain things would play out differently. The unusual game board 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 Silly Experiment
Man, why don't more Pokémon games relax a little and have some fun? Magikarp Jump (2017) was a uncommon case of The Pokémon Company giving its blessing a game with a concept so silly, it was bordering on internet meme. And when we're dealing with a franchise where trainers venture forth with a team of ineffective monsters who simply cannot do anything, it's surprising we don't have more Pokémon games that poke fun at themselves.
In Magikarp Jump, the player is tasked with raising 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 jump the highest. One drawback is how Magikarp Jump, like many phone games, requires the player to pause before they can train 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 raise its stats as it was to get snatched by a Pidgeotto. Apart from the clever dialogue, Magikarp Jump also experimented with other things one might wish the mainline games would do, like offering a wide variety of the same species of monster. I know it's not practical for any Pokémon game to have 30 different colorings and patterns for a compendium 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. Witty events with unpredictable results that permanently influence how you can train a companion also describe the excellent Mewgenics. It's worth noting: Mewgenics will almost certainly be in the running when 2026 GOTY season arrives.
With numerous mainline entries and spin-offs, it's probable that I omitted that particular Pokémon game you absolutely adore but contend that not nearly enough people played. It's acknowledged that some people remember games like Pokémon Ranger or Pokemon Pinball fondly despite argu
