Following a vision of world peace courtesy of Pokemon Go, it's beyond doubt that the monster collecting franchise stands as one of the most ubiquitous gaming titles in existence. The iconic Pikachu is every bit as identifiable as Mickey Mouse, if not more so. The persistent frenzy around card prices guarantees almost daily Pokémon headlines. You'd be difficult to find a Pokémon game that failed to move at least a couple million copies. Even, unofficial Pokémon games achieve popularity every year.
Yet despite that pervasiveness and popularity, some Pokémon games that are totally underappreciated. These represent games that failed to receive their fair shake, or were buried under the hype of the core series. These are Pokémon games released on ill-fated platforms or online offerings, or were early forays onto new mediums. Frequently, they are Pokémon games that might have blossomed if they had received follow-ups or contemporary re-releases. With these criteria in mind, we won't be offering just one more recommendation for Pokémon Conquest or the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon series. We're pulling an Excadrill.
Nevertheless, these might be these Pokémon games. So, before rearranging your glasses and writing 'Well,' we can all acknowledge that these are Pokémon games for those possessing refined tastes, agreed?
Pokemon Ranch: The Cozy Precursor
An excessive number of Pokémon games emphasize the battling aspect of the series, and not nearly enough of them focus on the everyday realities that would come with owning a pet. Admittedly, there are minor mechanics like these in recent entries—players may play with your monsters in bases. However, I'm dying for a Pokémon game more in the style of Nintendogs or The Sims.
My Pokemon Ranch (2008) for the Nintendo Wii isn't it. The digital-only title is most accurately viewed as the antecedent to Pokémon Home; that is, as a storage system to hold monsters from various titles. Reviews from its release said Ranch was a bad if not outright hideous game. It's not my goal to argue against these notions, but it behooves me to say Ranch might be the nearest we've come to a slice-of-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 interactions with Pokémon were simple, and a significant part of the draw was watching what your monsters might do when not 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 tiny companion. 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. One might cry 'save us, Pokémon Pokopia!' but I also know that the upcoming Switch exclusive is just as much a puzzler as it is a life sim.
Ranch was released long before Stardew Valley sparked the enduring trend of comfort gaming. It was before the rise of passive games, and the Let's Play normalization of viewing games you aren't playing. Many never realized that Ranch's concept to watch your critters as much as you play with them wasn't to hide a lack of substance. In actuality, Ranch's attention to detail was so extraordinary, there's a Twitch stream focused on broadcasting the game 24/7. The individual who operates the channel maintains that, after nearly two decades of playing the game, he even now has not encountered all that is in it. Justice for Pokémon Ranch: nobody understood you in 2008.
Pokémon Duel: The Tactical Board Game Gone
Did you know that Pokémon once had an licensed tabletop game with action figures? Pokémon Duel was the 2016 effort to adapt the tabletop 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 hallmarks of a gacha title where players could spend for advantage—and there was motivation to do so, given the slow progression for new figures.
These questionable mechanics obfuscated a sad truth: Pokémon Duel was an superb tactical game with Duel anymore. "Words cannot describe how much I loved and miss this game," one YouTube comment reads, seven years after Duel's servers were pulled. "Truly I think this game was better than TCG Pocket in terms of complexity, approachability, game design, and features in general," a user wrote. "I truly believe if it launched now people would be playing it more than GO and Pocket together."
Unfortunately, Duel's initial launch was marred by connectivity problems. Technical problems, alongside Duel's predatory monetization 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 unique board structure made for a fantastic strategic challenge for the few folks who played Duel, but that board is also a intimidating eyesore.
Pokemon: Magikarp Jump: The Silly Experiment
Man, why don't more Pokémon games loosen up a little and have some enjoyment? 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 shitpost. And when we're dealing with a franchise where trainers venture forth with a team of useless 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 charged with raising the best possible version of the notorious fish. I'm not talking about a Magikarp that can win battles. These are 'Magikarp 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 wait before they can train their Magikarp further. But it is clear throughout the experience that the developers loved and understood the fan culture around Magikarp.
Nowhere was this more evident than in Jump's merciless random events, where your Magikarp was 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 species of monster. It's understood it's not practical for any Pokémon game to have 30 different variations for a roster 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 kernels of genius were there. Witty events with unpredictable results that permanently influence 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 arrives.
With dozens of core games and spin-offs, chances are that I omitted that particular Pokémon game you absolutely adore but argue that not nearly enough people played. I know that some people remember games like Pokémon Ranger or Pokemon Pinball with affection despite argu
