In the wake of a taste of global harmony thanks to Pokémon Go, it's undeniable that the monster collecting franchise is about as popular video games around. Pikachu is every bit as recognizable as Mickey Mouse, perhaps even more. The ongoing excitement around card prices guarantees near-daily Pokémon headlines. You'd be difficult to find a pocket monster game that didn't sell at least a few million units. Even, fan-made Pokémon games go viral every year.
Yet in spite of that pervasiveness and fame, some Pokémon games that are totally overlooked. These are games that failed to receive their fair shake, or were overshadowed under the hype of the core series. They're Pokémon games stuck on ill-fated platforms or services, or were early forays onto new mediums. They're often also Pokémon games that might have blossomed if they ever got sequels or modern remakes. Considering these factors, this list will not be just one more recommendation for Pokémon Conquest or the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon series. We're going beneath the surface.
Nevertheless, these might be these Pokémon games. So, before rearranging your glasses and typing 'Actually,' let us just agree that these are Pokémon games for people with discerning palates, agreed?
Pokémon Ranch: The Chill Precursor
Too many Pokémon games focus on the battling aspect of the series, and not nearly enough of them highlight the everyday aspects that would come with living with a companion. Sure, modern titles include minor mechanics like these in recent entries—you can play with your monsters in camps. However, I'm longing for a Pokémon game more in the vein of Nintendogs or The Sims.
My Pokémon Ranch (2008) for the Nintendo Wii is not that game. The digital-only title is best seen as the antecedent to Pokemon Home; that is, as a repository to store monsters from various titles. Critical reception from its launch said Ranch was a poor if not outright hideous game. It's not my goal to dispute these notions, but it behooves 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 Mii avatars—get this—just relax with your Pokémon pals. The interactions with Pokémon were simple, and a significant part of the appeal was watching what your monsters might do when they're not being forced into battle. Ideally, Pokémon Ranch would have been the start of a beautiful franchise built on the daily joys of coexisting with a tiny companion. But since 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. One might cry 'save us, Pokémon Pokopia!' but I also know that the upcoming Switch exclusive is as much a puzzle game as it is a life simulation.
Ranch came out long before Stardew Valley sparked the enduring trend of cozy games. It was before the rise of idle games, and the video playthrough popularization of viewing games you aren't actively controlling. Most people never understood that Ranch's proposal to observe your creatures as much as you interact with them didn't mask a lack of substance. In actuality, Ranch's attention to detail was so extraordinary, there's a live stream focused on running the game 24/7. The streamer who operates the channel maintains that, after almost twenty years of experiencing the game, he still has not encountered all that is in it. Justice for Pokémon Ranch: no one understood you in 2008.
Pokemon Duel: The Strategic Board Game Gone
Did you know that Pokémon once had an official tabletop game with miniatures? Pokémon Duel was the 2016 attempt to adapt the physical experience in a more approachable format. Duel was also, unfortunately, one of Pokémon's first ventures into the world of free-to-play 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 figures.
These poor design choices masked a sad truth: Pokémon Duel was an excellent 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 better than TCG Pocket in terms of complexity, approachability, game design, and content in general," another commenter declared. "I am convinced if it launched now people would be engaging with it more than GO and Pocket together."
Unfortunately, Duel's early release was plagued with connectivity problems. Bugs, alongside Duel's predatory monetization model, gave people few incentives to return. If, by some miracle, 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 playing field is also a daunting visual mess.
Pokemon: 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 uncommon case of The Pokémon Company giving its blessing a game with a concept so absurd, it was bordering on internet meme. And when we're dealing with a franchise where trainers venture forth with a team of ineffective monsters who literally can't do anything, I'm shocked we don't have more Pokémon games that poke fun at themselves.
In Magikarp Jump, the player is tasked with breeding the best possible 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 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 appreciated and got the community love around Magikarp.
Nowhere was this more evident than in Jump's brutal random occurrences, where your Magikarp was as likely to raise its stats as it was to get eaten by a Pidgeotto. Apart from the great writing, Magikarp Jump also experimented with other things I wish the mainline games would do, like offering a diverse range 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 especially sophisticated or profound game, but the seeds of brilliance were there. Sharply written events with unpredictable results that forever alter how you can train a companion also describe the excellent Mewgenics. It's worth noting: Mewgenics will almost certainly be in the running when 2026 GOTY season rolls around.
Given numerous mainline entries and derivative titles, it's probable that I omitted that one Pokémon game you absolutely adore but argue that too few people played. It's acknowledged that some people remember games like Pokemon Ranger or Pokemon Pinball fondly despite argu
