Following a vision of world peace courtesy of Pokémon Go, it's undeniable that the creature-catching franchise is about as popular video games in existence. Pikachu is just as identifiable as Mickey Mouse, perhaps even more. The ongoing frenzy surrounding trading card values guarantees near-daily Pokémon news stories. You'd be hard-pressed to find a pocket monster game that didn't sell at least a few million units. Remarkably, fan-made Pokémon games go viral every year.
Yet despite that ubiquity and fame, there are still Pokémon games that remain underappreciated. These are games that failed to receive their proper due, or were buried under the excitement of the mainline series. These are Pokémon games stuck on doomed consoles or services, or were pioneering attempts onto different formats. They're often also Pokémon games that might have blossomed if they ever got sequels or modern remakes. Considering these factors, we won't be offering just one more 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. So, before rearranging your glasses and typing 'Actually,' let us just agree that these are Pokémon games for those possessing discerning palates, shall we?
Pokémon Ranch: The Chill Precursor
An excessive number of Pokémon games emphasize the battling element of the series, and far too few of them focus on the everyday aspects that would come with living with a pet. Sure, modern titles include minor mechanics like these in recent entries—players may play with your monsters in bases. But I am dying for a Pokémon game more in the vein of Nintendogs or The Sims.
My Pokémon Ranch (2008) for the Nintendo Wii isn't it. The digital-only title is best seen as the precursor to Pokemon Home; that is, as a storage system to store monsters from various titles. Reviews from its launch said Ranch was a bad if not truly ugly game. It's not my goal to argue against these claims, but it compels me to say Ranch might be the nearest we've come to a everyday life Pokémon game.
As the name suggests, the game is set on a farm where your personal Miis—imagine this—simply hang out with your Pokémon pals. The interactions with Pokémon were simple, and a lot of the draw 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 simple pleasures of coexisting with a tiny companion. But since The Pokémon Company can charge a subscription for Pokémon Home now, it's likely 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 as much a puzzle game as it is a life sim.
Ranch was released well before Stardew Valley kicked off the lasting craze of cozy games. It was prior to the rise of idle games, and the Let's Play popularization of watching games you aren't actively controlling. Many never realized that Ranch's concept to observe your creatures as much as you play with them didn't mask a shallow core. In actuality, Ranch's meticulous design was so remarkable, a Twitch stream dedicated to broadcasting the game continuously. The streamer who runs the channel maintains that, after almost twenty years of playing 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 Tabletop Game Gone
Are you aware that Pokémon once had an official board game with action figures? 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 forays into the world of free-to-play mobile gaming. Duel had the hallmarks of a gacha title where players could pay to win—and there was incentive to do so, given the slow progression for new figures.
These poor design choices obfuscated a tragic reality: Pokémon Duel was an superb tactical game with Duel anymore. "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 complexity, accessibility, game design, and content in general," another commenter 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 predatory monetization model, gave people little reason to come back. Should a revival occur, The Pokémon Company decided to revive this franchise, it's unclear things would end better. The unusual board structure made for a great strategic challenge for the few folks who played Duel, but that board is also a intimidating visual mess.
Pokémon: Magikarp Jump: The Absurd Experiment
Wow, 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 approving a game with a premise so absurd, it was verging on internet meme. And when we're dealing with a franchise where trainers venture forth with a team of useless monsters who literally can't 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 infamous fish. This isn't about a Magikarp that can kick your butt. These are 'karp raised to enter contests to see who can flop the highest. One drawback is how Magikarp Jump, like many mobile games, requires the player to pause before they can train 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 events, where your Magikarp was just as likely to improve as it was to get snatched by a Pidgeotto. Apart from the clever dialogue, Magikarp Jump also tried out other things one might wish the core series would do, like offering a wide variety of the same type of monster. I know it's not practical for any Pokémon game to have dozens of variations for a compendium of over a thousand creatures, as Magikarp Jump does... but one can dream.
Magikarp Jump was not a particularly complex or profound game, but the seeds of brilliance were there. Witty events with outrageous outcomes 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 conversation when Game of the Year season rolls around.
With numerous core games and derivative titles, it's probable that I didn't mention that one Pokémon game you totally love but contend that too few people played. It's acknowledged that some people look back on games like Pokemon Ranger or Pokemon Pinball with affection despite argu
