In the wake of a taste of global harmony thanks to Pokemon Go, there's no question that the monster collecting series stands as one of the most mainstream gaming titles in existence. Pikachu is every bit as recognizable as Disney's mascot, perhaps even more. The ongoing excitement surrounding card prices ensures almost daily Pokémon news stories. You'd be hard-pressed to find a Pokémon game that didn't sell at least a couple million units. Remarkably, fan-made Pokémon games achieve popularity annually.
However despite that pervasiveness and popularity, there are still Pokémon games that remain underappreciated. These are games that didn't get their proper due, or were buried under the excitement of the mainline series. These are Pokémon games stuck on ill-fated consoles or services, 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, this list will not be yet another reminder for Pokémon Conquest or the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon series. We're going beneath the surface.
Still, these might be these Pokémon games. So, before adjusting your spectacles and writing 'Well,' let us just agree that these are Pokémon games for people with refined tastes, agreed?
Pokemon Ranch: The Chill Forerunner
An excessive number of Pokémon games emphasize the battling aspect of the series, and far too few of them highlight the everyday aspects that would come with owning a companion. Admittedly, there are minor mechanics like these in modern games—players may play with your monsters in bases. But I am 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 digital-only title is most accurately viewed as the precursor to Pokémon Home; that is, as a repository to hold monsters from different games. Critical reception from its release said Ranch was a poor 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 closest we've ever gotten to a slice-of-life Pokémon game.
True to its title, the game takes place on a ranch where your Mii avatars—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 cockfighting. Ideally, Pokémon Ranch would have been the beginning of a beautiful franchise built on the daily joys of living your life with a small creature. But since 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 complete potential. I'd say 'help 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 simulation.
Ranch came out long before Stardew Valley kicked off the lasting craze of cozy games. It was prior to the rise of passive games, and the Let's Play normalization of viewing games you aren't playing. Most people never understood that Ranch's proposal to observe your creatures as much as you interact with them wasn't to hide a shallow core. 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 states that, after nearly two decades of experiencing the game, he even now has not seen all that is in it. Recognition for Pokémon Ranch: no one understood you in 2008.
Pokemon Duel: The Strategic Tabletop Game Gone
Did you know that Pokémon once had an licensed tabletop game with action figures? Pokemon Duel was the 2016 attempt to digitize the physical experience in a more approachable format. Duel was also, unfortunately, one of Pokémon's earliest ventures 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 tragic reality: Pokémon Duel was an superb tactical game with Duel today. "I can’t express how much I loved and miss this game," one YouTube comment reads, seven years after Duel's servers were shut down. "Honestly I think this game was better than TCG Pocket in terms of complexity, accessibility, 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 together."
Unfortunately, Duel's early release was plagued with connectivity problems. Technical problems, alongside Duel's predatory monetization model, gave people few incentives to come back. Should a revival occur, The Pokémon Company decided to revive this franchise, it's unclear things would play out differently. The unusual game board made for a fantastic strategic challenge for the handful of players who played Duel, but that board is also a daunting eyesore.
Pokemon: Magikarp Jump: The Whimsical Gem
Wow, why don't more Pokémon games relax a little and have some fun? Magikarp Jump (2017) was a rare instance of The Pokémon Company approving a game with a premise so absurd, it was verging on internet meme. And when we're dealing with a franchise where trainers go out with a full belt of ineffective monsters who simply cannot do anything, it's surprising we don't have more Pokémon games that poke fun at themselves.
In Magikarp Jump, the player is charged with breeding the ultimate version of the notorious fish. This isn't about a Magikarp that can kick your butt. These are 'Magikarp raised to enter contests to see who can flop the highest. One drawback 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 community love around Magikarp.
This was most apparent than in Jump's merciless random occurrences, where your Magikarp was as likely to improve as it was to get snatched by a Pidgeotto. Beyond the clever dialogue, Magikarp Jump also experimented with other things I wish the core series would do, like offering a diverse range of the same type of monster. It's understood it's not feasible for any Pokémon game to have 30 different colorings and patterns 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 outrageous outcomes that permanently influence how you can raise a pet also describe the excellent Mewgenics. And I'm just saying: Mewgenics will almost certainly be in the running when 2026 GOTY season rolls around.
Given dozens of core games and derivative titles, chances are that I omitted that one Pokémon game you totally love but contend that too few people played. It's acknowledged that some people remember games like Pokémon Ranger or Pokemon Pinball with affection despite argu
