Following a glimpse of global harmony courtesy of Pokémon Go, it's undeniable that the creature-catching franchise is about as popular gaming titles around. Pikachu is every bit as identifiable as Mickey Mouse, if not more so. The persistent pandemonium surrounding trading card values ensures almost daily Pokemon news stories. You'd be hard-pressed to find a pocket monster game that didn't sell at least a few million copies. Even, fan-made Pokémon games go viral annually.
Yet despite that pervasiveness and fame, there are still Pokémon games that are totally underappreciated. These represent games that didn't get their proper due, or were overshadowed under the excitement of the mainline series. These are Pokémon games released on doomed consoles or services, or were early forays onto new mediums. Frequently, they are Pokémon games that probably would have blossomed if they had received sequels or contemporary re-releases. With these criteria in mind, we won't be offering yet another reminder for Pokemon Conquest or the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon series. We're pulling an Excadrill.
Still, you may already know about these Pokémon games. So, before rearranging your glasses and typing 'Actually,' we can all acknowledge that these are Pokémon games for people with discerning palates, agreed?
Pokémon Ranch: The Relaxed Precursor
Too many Pokémon games focus on the combat element of the series, and far too few of them focus on the everyday realities that would come with owning a pet. Sure, there are small features 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 most accurately viewed as the precursor to Pokémon Home; that is, as a repository to store monsters from various titles. Reviews from its release said Ranch was a bad if not outright hideous game. I'm not here to dispute these notions, 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 takes place on a farm where your personal Miis—get this—simply hang out with your Pokémon pals. The activities with Pokémon were basic, and a significant part of the draw was watching what your monsters might do when they're not being forced into cockfighting. In a just world, Pokémon Ranch would have been the beginning of a wonderful franchise built on the daily joys of coexisting with a tiny companion. However, because The Pokémon Company can charge a subscription for Pokémon Home now, I'm guessing we will never see a Pokémon Ranch game developed to its complete potential. I'd say 'help us, Pokémon Pokopia!' but I also know that the Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive is as much a puzzle game as it is a life sim.
Ranch was released long before Stardew Valley sparked the enduring trend of cozy games. It was before the proliferation of passive games, and the video playthrough normalization of viewing games you aren't playing. Most people never understood that Ranch's proposal to observe your creatures as much as you interact with them wasn't to hide a lack of substance. In truth, Ranch's meticulous design was so remarkable, a Twitch stream dedicated to running the game continuously. The individual who runs the channel maintains that, after almost twenty years of experiencing the game, he still has not seen everything that is in it. Recognition for Pokémon Ranch: nobody understood you in 2008.
Pokémon Duel: The Strategic Tabletop Game Gone
Did you know that Pokemon once had an licensed tabletop game with miniatures? Pokémon Duel was the 2016 effort to adapt the physical experience in a more accessible format. Duel was also, unfortunately, one of Pokémon's first 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.
These poor design choices obfuscated a tragic reality: Pokémon Duel was an superb 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 shut down. "Truly I think this game was better than TCG Pocket in terms of depth, approachability, game design, and content in general," another commenter wrote. "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 scummy monetization 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 end better. The unique game board made for a fantastic strategic challenge for the handful of players who played Duel, but that board is also a daunting eyesore.
Pokémon: Magikarp Jump: The Silly Experiment
Man, why don't more Pokémon games relax a little and have some enjoyment? Magikarp Jump (2017) was a rare instance of The Pokémon Company giving its blessing a game with a premise so absurd, it was verging on internet meme. Considering we're dealing with a franchise where trainers venture forth with a team of useless monsters who simply cannot do anything, it's surprising we don't have more Pokémon games that poke fun at themselves.
Within Magikarp Jump, the player is tasked with raising the ultimate version of the infamous fish. I'm not talking about a Magikarp that can kick your butt. These are 'Magikarp raised to enter contests to see who can flop 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 appreciated and got the fan culture around Magikarp.
Nowhere was this more evident than in Jump's brutal random occurrences, where your Magikarp was as likely to improve as it was to get snatched by a Pidgeotto. Beyond the clever dialogue, Magikarp Jump also experimented with other things one might wish the mainline games 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 particularly sophisticated or profound game, but the seeds of brilliance were there. Sharply written 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 likely be in the conversation when Game of the Year season rolls around.
Given numerous mainline entries and spin-offs, chances are that I omitted that particular Pokémon game you totally love but argue that too few people played. It's acknowledged that some people remember games like Pokémon Ranger or Pokémon Pinball with affection despite argu
