In the wake of a taste of world peace courtesy of Pokemon Go, there's no question that the creature-catching franchise is about as popular video games around. Pikachu is every bit as identifiable as Mickey Mouse, perhaps even more. The persistent frenzy around trading card values ensures near-daily Pokemon headlines. It would be difficult to find a Pokémon game that didn't sell at least a few million copies. Even, unofficial Pokémon games achieve popularity every year.
Yet despite that pervasiveness and popularity, some Pokémon games that are totally underappreciated. These represent games that failed to receive their fair shake, or were buried by the hype of the mainline series. They're Pokémon games released on ill-fated consoles or online offerings, or were early forays onto different formats. Frequently, they are Pokémon games that probably would have blossomed if they ever got sequels or contemporary re-releases. With these criteria in mind, we won't be offering yet another recommendation for Pokemon Conquest or the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon series. We're pulling an Excadrill.
Nevertheless, 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 refined tastes, shall we?
Pokemon Ranch: The Relaxed Precursor
An excessive number of Pokémon games emphasize the battling aspect of the series, and far too few of them focus on the ordinary realities that would come with living with a pet. Admittedly, modern titles include minor mechanics like these in recent entries—players may pet, and feed your monsters in bases. However, I'm dying for a Pokémon game more in the vein of Nintendogs or The Sims.
My Pokemon Ranch (2008) for the Wii isn't it. The digital-only title is best seen as the precursor to Pokemon Home; that is, as a repository to store monsters from various titles. Reviews from its release noted Ranch was a bad if not truly ugly game. I'm not here to argue against these notions, but it behooves me to say Ranch might be the nearest we've come to a everyday life Pokémon game.
True to its title, the game is set on a farm where your Mii avatars—imagine this—just relax with your pals. The activities with Pokémon were basic, and a lot of the draw was watching what your monsters might do when they're not being forced into battle. In a just world, Pokémon Ranch would have been the start of a beautiful franchise built on the daily joys of living your life with a tiny companion. But since The Pokémon Company can charge a subscription for Pokémon Home now, it's likely we will not get 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 puzzle game as it is a life simulation.
Ranch came out well before Stardew Valley kicked off the lasting craze of cozy games. It was before the rise of passive games, and the video playthrough popularization of viewing games you aren't actively controlling. Most people never understood that Ranch's proposal to watch your critters as much as you play with them wasn't to hide a lack of substance. In actuality, Ranch's attention to detail was so extraordinary, there's a Twitch stream focused on running the game 24/7. The individual who operates the channel maintains that, after almost twenty years of experiencing the game, he even now has not encountered everything that is in it. Justice for Pokémon Ranch: no one knew what to do with you in 2008.
Pokémon Duel: The Strategic Board Game Gone
Did you know that Pokémon once had an official board game with action figures? Pokemon Duel was the 2016 effort to adapt the physical experience in a more accessible format. Duel was also, unfortunately, one of Pokémon's earliest ventures into the world of freemium phone games. Duel had the trappings of a gacha game where players could spend for advantage—and there was incentive to do so, given the lengthy grind for new pieces.
All of these poor design choices masked a tragic reality: Pokémon Duel was an excellent tactical game with Duel today. "I can’t express how much I loved and miss this game," one YouTube comment reads, years after Duel's servers were pulled. "Truly I think this game was superior to TCG Pocket in terms of depth, approachability, game design, and content in general," a user declared. "I am convinced if it came out now people would be playing it more than GO and Pocket combined."
Regrettably, Duel's early release was plagued with 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, I'm still not certain things would end better. The unusual board structure made for a fantastic strategic challenge for the handful of players who played Duel, but that board is also a intimidating visual mess.
Pokemon: Magikarp Jump: The Silly Gem
Wow, 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 premise so absurd, it was verging on internet meme. And when we're dealing with a franchise where trainers go out with a full belt of useless monsters who literally can't do anything, I'm shocked we don't have more Pokémon games that poke fun at themselves.
Within Magikarp Jump, the player is charged with breeding the ultimate version of the infamous fish. I'm not talking 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 improve their Magikarp further. But it is clear throughout the experience that Select Button loved and understood the fan culture around Magikarp.
This was most apparent than in Jump's merciless 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 great writing, Magikarp Jump also tried out other things I wish the core series would do, like offering a diverse range 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 especially complex or profound game, but the seeds of brilliance were there. Sharply written events with outrageous outcomes that forever alter how you can raise a pet also describe the excellent Mewgenics. It's worth noting: Mewgenics will likely be in the conversation when 2026 GOTY season rolls around.
Given dozens of mainline entries and derivative titles, chances are that I didn't mention that one Pokémon game you totally love but contend that not nearly enough people played. I know that some people look back on games like Pokémon Ranger or Pokémon Pinball with affection despite argu
