Following a taste of world peace courtesy of Pokémon Go, it's beyond doubt that the creature-catching franchise stands as one of the most ubiquitous gaming titles around. Pikachu is every bit as identifiable as Disney's mascot, if not more so. The ongoing frenzy around trading card values ensures almost daily Pokemon news stories. It would be difficult to find a Pokémon game that failed to move at least a couple million copies. Even, unofficial Pokémon games achieve popularity annually.
However despite that pervasiveness and fame, some Pokémon games that remain underappreciated. These are games that failed to receive their fair shake, or were overshadowed by the hype of the mainline 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 flourished if they had received sequels or contemporary re-releases. Considering these factors, we won't be offering just one more recommendation for Pokémon Conquest or the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon series. We're going beneath the surface.
Still, these might be these Pokémon games. Therefore, prior to rearranging your glasses and writing 'Well,' let us just agree that these are Pokémon games for those possessing refined tastes, agreed?
Pokémon Ranch: The Cozy Precursor
An excessive number of Pokémon games focus on the combat element of the series, and far too few of them focus on the everyday aspects that would come with owning a companion. Admittedly, modern titles include small features like these in recent entries—players may pet, and feed 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 digital-only title is best seen as the antecedent to Pokémon Home; that is, as a storage system to store monsters from various titles. Critical reception from its launch noted Ranch was a poor 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 come to a slice-of-life Pokémon game.
As the name suggests, the game takes place on a ranch where your personal Miis—imagine this—simply hang out with your pals. The activities with Pokémon were basic, and a lot of the appeal was observing what your monsters might do when they're not being forced into battle. Ideally, Pokémon Ranch would have been the beginning of a beautiful franchise built on the simple pleasures of living your life with a tiny companion. However, because The Pokémon Company can charge a subscription for Pokémon Home now, it's likely we will not get a Pokémon Ranch game realized to its fullest 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 sim.
Ranch was released long before Stardew Valley kicked off the lasting craze of cozy games. It was prior to the rise of idle games, and the Let's Play normalization of watching games you aren't actively controlling. Most people never understood that Ranch's proposal to observe your creatures as much as you play with them wasn't to hide a shallow core. In actuality, Ranch's attention to detail was so extraordinary, a Twitch stream focused on broadcasting the game continuously. 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.
Pokémon Duel: The Strategic Board Game Gone
Did you know that Pokemon once had an official tabletop game with miniatures? Pokemon Duel was the 2016 effort to digitize the physical experience in a more accessible format. Duel was also, unfortunately, one of Pokémon's first ventures into the world of free-to-play mobile gaming. Duel had the trappings of a gacha title where players could pay to win—and there was incentive to do so, given the lengthy grind for new figures.
All of these poor design choices obfuscated a sad truth: Pokémon Duel was an excellent tactical game with Duel today. "I can’t express how much I adored and miss this game," a YouTube comment reads, years after Duel's servers were pulled. "Honestly I think this game was better than TCG Pocket in terms of complexity, approachability, design, and content in general," another commenter declared. "I truly believe if it came out now people would be engaging with it more than GO and Pocket combined."
Unfortunately, Duel's early release was marred by server issues. Bugs, alongside Duel's scummy monetization model, gave people few incentives to return. Should a revival occur, The Pokémon Company chose to resurrect this franchise, I'm still not certain things would end better. The unique board structure made for a great tactical experience for the few folks who played Duel, but that playing field is also a daunting visual mess.
Pokémon: Magikarp Jump: The Silly Gem
Man, 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 silly, it was bordering on shitpost. And when 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.
Within Magikarp Jump, the player is tasked with raising the best possible version of the notorious fish. I'm not talking about a Magikarp that can kick your butt. 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 phone games, forces the player to pause before they can train their Magikarp further. But it is clear throughout the experience that Select Button 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 snatched by a Pidgeotto. Apart from the clever dialogue, Magikarp Jump also tried out 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 dozens of colorings and patterns for a roster 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 unpredictable results 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 Game of the Year season rolls around.
With numerous core games and derivative titles, it's probable that I didn't mention that particular Pokémon game you totally love but argue that too few people played. It's acknowledged that some people look back on games like Pokémon Ranger or Pokemon Pinball fondly notwithstanding argu
