Following a vision of world peace thanks to Pokémon Go, it's beyond doubt that the creature-catching series is about as mainstream video games around. The iconic Pikachu is every bit as identifiable as Disney's mascot, if not more so. The persistent frenzy surrounding trading card values guarantees near-daily Pokemon news stories. It would be difficult to find a Pokémon game that didn't sell at least a couple million units. Even, unofficial Pokémon games go viral annually.
Yet in spite of that ubiquity and fame, there are still Pokémon games that remain underappreciated. These are games that didn't get their fair shake, or were overshadowed under the hype of the mainline series. These are Pokémon games stuck on doomed consoles or online offerings, or were early forays onto different formats. Frequently, they are Pokémon games that probably would have flourished if they had received sequels or modern remakes. With these criteria in mind, we won't be offering yet another reminder for Pokemon Conquest or the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon series. We're digging deep.
Still, you may already know about these Pokémon games. Therefore, prior to rearranging your glasses and typing 'Well,' we can all acknowledge that these are Pokémon games for people with refined tastes, agreed?
Pokemon Ranch: The Cozy Forerunner
An excessive number of Pokémon games focus on 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. Admittedly, modern titles include minor mechanics like these in recent entries—players may pet, and feed your monsters in camps. But I am 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 Pokemon Home; that is, as a storage system to hold monsters from different games. Critical reception from its release noted Ranch was a poor if not outright hideous game. I'm not here to dispute these claims, but it compels me to say Ranch might be the nearest we've ever gotten to a slice-of-life Pokémon game.
As the name suggests, the game is set on a ranch where your personal Miis—imagine this—simply hang out with your pals. The interactions 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 start of a wonderful franchise built on the daily joys of coexisting with a small creature. But since 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. One might cry 'help us, Pokémon Pokopia!' but I also know that the Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive is just as much a puzzle game as it is a life sim.
Ranch came out well before Stardew Valley kicked off the lasting craze of comfort gaming. It was prior to the rise of idle games, and the Let's Play popularization of viewing games you aren't playing. Many never understood that Ranch's concept to observe your critters as much as you play with them wasn't to hide a lack of substance. In truth, Ranch's attention to detail was so extraordinary, there's a live stream dedicated to running the game continuously. The streamer who operates the channel maintains that, after nearly two decades of playing the game, he still has not encountered everything that is in it. Justice for Pokémon Ranch: nobody knew what to do with you in 2008.
Pokemon Duel: The Tactical Tabletop Game Lost
Are you aware that Pokémon once had an official board game with action figures? Pokémon Duel was the 2016 effort to digitize the tabletop experience in a more approachable format. Duel was also, unfortunately, one of Pokémon's first forays into the world of freemium mobile gaming. Duel had the trappings of a gacha game where players could spend for advantage—and there was motivation to do so, given the slow progression for new figures.
These questionable mechanics 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," a YouTube comment states, seven years after Duel's servers were shut down. "Truly I think this game was better than TCG Pocket in terms of complexity, accessibility, game design, and features in general," another commenter declared. "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 plagued with server issues. Technical problems, alongside Duel's predatory monetization model, gave people little reason to return. Should a revival occur, The Pokémon Company decided to revive this franchise, I'm still not certain things would play out differently. The unusual board structure made for a great tactical experience for the few folks who played Duel, but that board is also a daunting visual mess.
Pokemon: Magikarp Jump: The Whimsical Experiment
Wow, why don't more Pokémon games loosen up a little and have some enjoyment? Magikarp Jump (2017) was a rare instance of The Pokémon Company giving its blessing a game with a concept so silly, it was verging on internet meme. Considering we're dealing with a franchise where trainers go out 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 breeding the ultimate version of the notorious fish. This isn't about a Magikarp that can win battles. These are 'Magikarp raised to enter contests to see who can flop the highest. I'm not a fan is how Magikarp Jump, like many mobile games, requires the player to pause before they can improve their Magikarp further. But it is clear throughout the experience that the developers appreciated and got the fan culture around Magikarp.
Nowhere was this more evident than in Jump's merciless random events, where your Magikarp was as likely to improve as it was to get eaten by a Pidgeotto. Beyond the clever dialogue, Magikarp Jump also tried out other things I wish the mainline games 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 we can hope.
Magikarp Jump was not a particularly sophisticated or profound game, but the seeds of brilliance were there. Witty events with unpredictable results 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 mainline entries and spin-offs, it's probable that I omitted that particular Pokémon game you absolutely adore but argue that too few people played. I know that some people remember games like Pokemon Ranger or Pokémon Pinball fondly despite argu
