Following a taste of world peace courtesy of Pokémon Go, it's undeniable that the creature-catching series is about as mainstream gaming titles around. The iconic Pikachu is every bit as identifiable as Disney's mascot, perhaps even more. The continued pandemonium surrounding card prices ensures almost daily Pokémon news stories. It would be hard-pressed to find a Pokémon game that failed to move at least a few million copies. Even, fan-made Pokémon games go viral every year.
However despite that pervasiveness and fame, there are still Pokémon games that remain underappreciated. These represent games that didn't get their fair shake, or were overshadowed under the hype of the core series. These are Pokémon games released on ill-fated platforms or services, or were early forays onto different formats. They're often also 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.
Still, these might be these Pokémon games. So, before adjusting your spectacles and writing 'Well,' we can all acknowledge that these are Pokémon games for people with discerning palates, shall we?
Pokémon Ranch: The Cozy Forerunner
An excessive number of Pokémon games emphasize the battling element of the series, and not nearly enough of them focus on the everyday realities that would come with owning a pet. Sure, modern titles include minor mechanics like these in modern games—you can play with your monsters in bases. However, I'm 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 downloadable-only title is best seen as the antecedent to Pokemon Home; that is, as a repository to store monsters from different games. Critical reception from its release said Ranch was a bad if not outright hideous game. I'm not here to argue against these notions, but it compels me to say Ranch might be the nearest we've ever gotten to a slice-of-life Pokémon game.
True to its title, 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 simple, and a significant part of the draw was watching what your monsters might do when not forced into cockfighting. In a just world, Pokémon Ranch would have been the start of a beautiful franchise built on the simple pleasures of living your life with a small creature. However, because The Pokémon Company can collect a fee for Pokémon Home now, it's likely we will never see a Pokémon Ranch game developed to its fullest potential. I'd say 'save 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 was released well before Stardew Valley sparked the enduring trend of comfort gaming. It was prior to the proliferation of idle games, and the video playthrough normalization of watching games you aren't actively controlling. Most people never realized that Ranch's proposal to watch 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 focused on running the game continuously. The individual who operates the channel maintains that, after almost twenty years of experiencing the game, he still has not seen all 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 Pokemon once had an licensed board game with miniatures? Pokemon Duel was the 2016 attempt to digitize the physical experience in a more approachable form. 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 title where players could spend for advantage—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 today. "Words cannot describe how much I loved and miss this game," one YouTube comment reads, seven years after Duel's servers were shut down. "Truly I think this game was better than TCG Pocket in terms of depth, approachability, 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 together."
Regrettably, Duel's initial launch was marred by connectivity problems. Technical problems, alongside Duel's scummy business model, gave people few incentives to return. 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 great tactical experience for the handful of players who played Duel, but that board is also a intimidating visual mess.
Pokémon: Magikarp Jump: The Whimsical 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 premise so absurd, it was verging on shitpost. And when we're dealing with a franchise where trainers go out with a team of ineffective monsters who literally can't do anything, I'm shocked we don't have more Pokémon games that laugh at themselves.
In Magikarp Jump, the player is tasked with raising the best possible version of the infamous fish. I'm not talking about a Magikarp that can win battles. These are 'Magikarp raised to enter contests to see who can jump the highest. I'm not a fan is how Magikarp Jump, like many mobile games, requires the player to pause before they can train their Magikarp further. But it is evident throughout the experience that the developers loved and understood the community love around Magikarp.
This was most apparent than in Jump's brutal random occurrences, where your Magikarp was as likely to improve as it was to get eaten by a Pidgeotto. Beyond the great writing, 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 feasible for any Pokémon game to have 30 different variations for a compendium of over a thousand creatures, as Magikarp Jump does... but one can dream.
Magikarp Jump was not a especially sophisticated or deep game, but the seeds of brilliance were there. Witty events with outrageous outcomes that forever alter how you can raise a pet also describe the excellent Mewgenics. And I'm just saying: Mewgenics will likely be in the running when Game of the Year season arrives.
With dozens of mainline entries and spin-offs, it's probable that I omitted that particular Pokémon game you totally love but argue that not nearly enough people played. I know that some people look back on games like Pokemon Ranger or Pokémon Pinball fondly despite argu
