Following a vision of global harmony courtesy of Pokemon Go, it's beyond doubt that the creature-catching franchise stands as one of the most ubiquitous video games around. Pikachu is just as identifiable as Mickey Mouse, if not more so. The ongoing pandemonium around card prices 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, fan-made Pokémon games go viral every year.
Yet in spite of that pervasiveness and fame, some Pokémon games that remain underappreciated. These represent games that didn't get their fair shake, or were buried by the excitement of the mainline series. These are 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 modern remakes. With these criteria in mind, we won't be offering just one more reminder for Pokemon Conquest or the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon series. We're digging deep.
Nevertheless, you may already know about these Pokémon games. Therefore, prior to adjusting your spectacles and typing 'Well,' let us just agree that these are Pokémon games for people with refined tastes, agreed?
Pokémon Ranch: The Chill Forerunner
An excessive number of Pokémon games emphasize the battling element of the series, and not nearly enough of them focus on the everyday aspects that would come with owning a companion. Sure, modern titles include small features like these in modern games—you can 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 Pokémon Ranch (2008) for the Wii isn't it. The digital-only title is best seen as the antecedent to Pokémon Home; that is, as a repository to hold monsters from various titles. Critical reception from its release noted Ranch was a poor if not truly ugly game. I'm not here to argue against these claims, but it behooves me to say Ranch might be the nearest we've ever gotten to a everyday life Pokémon game.
True to its title, the game is set on a farm where your personal Miis—get this—just relax with your pals. The interactions with Pokémon were basic, and a significant part of the draw was watching what your monsters might do when not forced into cockfighting. Ideally, Pokémon Ranch would have been the start of a beautiful franchise built on the simple pleasures of living your life with a tiny companion. But since The Pokémon Company can charge a subscription for Pokémon Home now, I'm guessing 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 just as much a puzzler as it is a life sim.
Ranch was released well before Stardew Valley kicked off the enduring trend of comfort gaming. It was prior to the proliferation of passive games, and the video playthrough normalization of watching games you aren't playing. Most people never understood that Ranch's proposal to watch your creatures as much as you play with them wasn't to hide a lack of substance. In actuality, Ranch's meticulous design was so extraordinary, a Twitch stream focused on running the game 24/7. The streamer who runs the channel states that, after nearly two decades of playing the game, he still has not seen all that is in it. Recognition for Pokémon Ranch: nobody knew what to do with you in 2008.
Pokemon Duel: The Tactical Board Game Gone
Did you know that Pokemon once had an official tabletop game with action figures? Pokémon Duel was the 2016 effort to digitize the physical experience in a more approachable form. Duel was also, unfortunately, one of Pokémon's earliest forays into the world of free-to-play mobile gaming. Duel had the trappings of a gacha game 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 superb strategy game with Duel today. "I can’t express how much I adored and miss this game," one YouTube comment states, seven years after Duel's servers were shut down. "Honestly I think this game was better than TCG Pocket in terms of depth, approachability, game design, and features in general," another commenter wrote. "I truly believe if it launched now people would be engaging with it more than GO and Pocket together."
Unfortunately, Duel's early release was marred by server issues. Technical problems, alongside Duel's predatory monetization model, gave people few incentives to return. If, by some miracle, 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 strategic challenge for the few folks who played Duel, but that board is also a intimidating eyesore.
Pokemon: Magikarp Jump: The Whimsical Gem
Wow, why don't more Pokémon games relax a little and have some enjoyment? Magikarp Jump (2017) was a rare instance of The Pokémon Company approving a game with a premise so absurd, it was verging on shitpost. And when we're dealing with a franchise where trainers go out with a full belt of ineffective monsters who literally can't do anything, it's surprising we don't have more Pokémon games that laugh at themselves.
Within Magikarp Jump, the player is tasked with breeding the ultimate version of the infamous fish. This isn't about a Magikarp that can win battles. These are 'Magikarp raised to enter contests to see who can jump the highest. One drawback is how Magikarp Jump, like many phone games, forces the player to wait before they can train their Magikarp further. But it is evident throughout the experience that the developers loved and understood the fan culture around Magikarp.
This was most apparent than in Jump's merciless random events, where your Magikarp was as likely to improve as it was to get eaten by a Pidgeotto. Apart from the clever dialogue, 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. I know it's not feasible for any Pokémon game to have dozens of colorings and patterns for a compendium of over a thousand creatures, as Magikarp Jump does... but we can hope.
Magikarp Jump was not a especially complex or deep game, but the seeds of brilliance were there. Sharply written events with outrageous outcomes 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 Game of the Year season arrives.
Given numerous mainline entries and spin-offs, chances are 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 remember games like Pokémon Ranger or Pokemon Pinball fondly despite argu
