In the wake of a vision of global harmony thanks to Pokémon Go, there's no question that the creature-catching series is about as mainstream video games in existence. Pikachu is just as famous as Disney's mascot, if not more so. The continued pandemonium surrounding trading card values guarantees almost daily Pokemon headlines. It would be difficult to find a Pokémon game that didn't sell at least a couple million units. Remarkably, unofficial Pokémon games achieve popularity annually.
However despite that ubiquity and fame, there are still Pokémon games that remain overlooked. These are games that failed to receive their proper due, or were buried under the excitement of the core series. These are Pokémon games released on doomed consoles or online offerings, or were pioneering attempts onto new mediums. Frequently, they are Pokémon games that might 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 going beneath the surface.
Still, you may already know about these Pokémon games. So, before rearranging your glasses and writing 'Actually,' we can all acknowledge that these are Pokémon games for people with discerning palates, agreed?
Pokémon Ranch: The Chill Forerunner
Too many Pokémon games emphasize the combat aspect of the series, and far too few of them highlight the everyday realities that would come with owning a companion. Sure, modern titles include minor mechanics like these in recent entries—players may play with your monsters in bases. But I am longing for a Pokémon game more in the vein of Nintendogs or The Sims.
My Pokemon Ranch (2008) for the Nintendo Wii isn't it. The downloadable-only title is most accurately viewed as the antecedent to Pokemon Home; that is, as a storage system to store monsters from different games. Critical reception from its launch noted Ranch was a bad if not outright hideous game. I'm not here to dispute these notions, but it behooves me to say Ranch might be the nearest we've come to a everyday life Pokémon game.
As the name suggests, the game is set on a farm where your Mii avatars—imagine this—simply hang out with your pals. The activities with Pokémon were simple, 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 beginning of a wonderful franchise built on the simple pleasures of coexisting with a small creature. However, because 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 'save us, Pokémon Pokopia!' but it's also known that the Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive is just as much a puzzle game as it is a life simulation.
Ranch came out long before Stardew Valley sparked the enduring trend of comfort gaming. It was before the proliferation of idle games, and the Let's Play normalization of viewing games you aren't actively controlling. Many never understood that Ranch's proposal to watch your creatures as much as you play with them didn't mask a shallow core. In truth, Ranch's attention to detail was so remarkable, there's a Twitch stream focused on broadcasting the game continuously. The streamer who operates the channel maintains that, after almost twenty years of playing the game, he still has not encountered all that is in it. Justice for Pokémon Ranch: no one understood you in 2008.
Pokémon Duel: The Tactical Board Game Lost
Did you know that Pokemon once had an official board game with action figures? Pokemon Duel was the 2016 attempt to digitize the physical experience in a more accessible form. Duel was also, unfortunately, one of Pokémon's first forays into the world of freemium mobile gaming. Duel had the trappings of a gacha title 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 obfuscated a sad truth: Pokémon Duel was an excellent strategy game with Duel today. "Words cannot describe how much I adored and miss this game," one YouTube comment states, years after Duel's servers were pulled. "Truly I think this game was superior to TCG Pocket in terms of depth, accessibility, 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."
Unfortunately, Duel's early release was marred by server issues. Bugs, alongside Duel's predatory business model, gave people little reason to come back. If, by some miracle, The Pokémon Company chose to resurrect this franchise, I'm still not certain things would play out differently. The unusual board structure made for a great tactical experience for the handful of players who played Duel, but that board is also a daunting eyesore.
Pokemon: Magikarp Jump: The Absurd Gem
Man, why don't more Pokémon games relax a little and have some enjoyment? Magikarp Jump (2017) was a uncommon case of The Pokémon Company approving a game with a premise so silly, it was bordering on shitpost. Considering we're dealing with a franchise where trainers go out with a team of useless monsters who simply cannot do anything, I'm shocked we don't have more Pokémon games that laugh 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 win battles. These are 'karp raised to enter competitions to see who can flop the highest. I'm not a fan is how Magikarp Jump, like many mobile games, forces the player to pause before they can improve their Magikarp further. But it is evident throughout the experience that Select Button loved and understood the community love around Magikarp.
This was most apparent than in Jump's merciless random occurrences, where your Magikarp was just as likely to raise its stats 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 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 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. It's worth noting: Mewgenics will likely be in the running when 2026 GOTY season rolls around.
Given numerous mainline entries and derivative titles, chances are that I omitted that one Pokémon game you totally love but contend that too few people played. I know that some people remember games like Pokémon Ranger or Pokémon Pinball fondly despite argu
