3 Pokémon Titles That Didn't Get the Love They Earned
In the wake of a vision of world peace thanks to Pokemon Go, there's no question that the creature-catching series is about as mainstream video games around. Pikachu is every bit as identifiable as Mickey Mouse, perhaps even more. The persistent excitement surrounding trading card values ensures almost daily Pokemon headlines. It would be difficult to find a pocket monster game that failed to move at least a couple million units. Even, unofficial Pokémon games go viral every year.
Yet despite that pervasiveness and popularity, some Pokémon games that remain underappreciated. These are titles that failed to receive their fair shake, or were buried by the hype of the core series. These are Pokémon games stuck on doomed consoles or online offerings, or were pioneering attempts onto different formats. They're often also Pokémon games that probably would have flourished if they had received follow-ups or modern remakes. With these criteria in mind, we won't be offering yet another reminder for Pokémon Conquest or the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon series. We're pulling an Excadrill.
Still, you may already know about these Pokémon games. So, before adjusting your spectacles and typing 'Actually,' we can all acknowledge that these are Pokémon games for people with discerning palates, agreed?
Pokémon Ranch: The Relaxed Precursor
Too many Pokémon games emphasize the combat aspect of the series, and not nearly enough of them highlight the ordinary aspects that would come with living with a companion. Sure, modern titles include minor mechanics like these in recent entries—you can pet, and feed your monsters in camps. 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 is not that game. The digital-only title is most accurately viewed as the antecedent to Pokemon Home; that is, as a storage system to hold monsters from different games. Reviews from its launch said Ranch was a poor if not outright hideous game. I'm not here to argue against these claims, but it behooves me to say Ranch might be the closest we've ever gotten to a everyday life Pokémon game.
As the name suggests, the game is set on a ranch where your personal Miis—get this—just relax with your pals. The activities with Pokémon were simple, and a lot of the draw was observing what your monsters might do when not forced into battle. In a just world, Pokémon Ranch would have been the start of a beautiful franchise built on the daily joys of coexisting with a small creature. But since The Pokémon Company can collect a fee for Pokémon Home now, it's likely we will not get a Pokémon Ranch game realized to its fullest potential. I'd say 'help us, Pokémon Pokopia!' but it's also known that the Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive is just as much a puzzler as it is a life sim.
Ranch was released well before Stardew Valley sparked the enduring trend of comfort gaming. It was before the rise of idle games, and the Let's Play popularization of watching games you aren't playing. Many never realized that Ranch's proposal to observe your creatures as much as you play with them didn't mask a shallow core. In actuality, Ranch's meticulous design was so remarkable, there's a Twitch stream focused on broadcasting the game 24/7. The streamer who operates the channel states that, after nearly two decades of playing the game, he even now has not seen all that is in it. Recognition for Pokémon Ranch: no one understood you in 2008.
Pokémon Duel: The Tactical Board Game Gone
Did you know that Pokemon once had an licensed board game with miniatures? Pokémon Duel was the 2016 attempt to digitize the tabletop experience in a more approachable format. Duel was also, sadly, one of Pokémon's earliest forays into the world of freemium phone games. Duel had the hallmarks of a gacha game where players could pay to win—and there was motivation to do so, given the lengthy grind for new pieces.
These poor design choices obfuscated a sad truth: Pokémon Duel was an excellent tactical game with Duel anymore. "Words cannot describe how much I adored and miss this game," a YouTube comment states, seven years after Duel's servers were shut down. "Truly I think this game was superior to TCG Pocket in terms of depth, accessibility, game design, and features in general," a user wrote. "I truly believe if it came out now people would be playing it more than GO and Pocket together."
Unfortunately, Duel's initial launch was marred by server issues. Technical problems, alongside Duel's scummy monetization model, gave people little reason to come back. Should a revival occur, The Pokémon Company decided to revive this franchise, I'm still not certain things would end better. The unusual board structure made for a great strategic challenge for the handful of players who played Duel, but that board is also a intimidating visual mess.
Pokemon: Magikarp Jump: The Whimsical Experiment
Man, why don't more Pokémon games relax a little and have some fun? Magikarp Jump (2017) was a uncommon case of The Pokémon Company approving a game with a concept so absurd, it was verging on internet meme. 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 poke fun at themselves.
In Magikarp Jump, the player is tasked with raising the best possible 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. I'm not a fan is how Magikarp Jump, like many phone games, requires the player to pause before they can improve their Magikarp further. But it is evident throughout the experience that the developers 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 raise its stats as it was to get snatched by a Pidgeotto. Beyond the great writing, 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. 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 one can dream.
Magikarp Jump was not a especially sophisticated or profound game, but the seeds of brilliance were there. Witty events with unpredictable results that forever alter how you can raise a pet also describe the excellent Mewgenics. It's worth noting: Mewgenics will almost certainly be in the conversation when 2026 GOTY season arrives.
With numerous mainline entries and spin-offs, chances are that I didn't mention that one Pokémon game you totally love but argue that too few people played. It's acknowledged that some people remember games like Pokémon Ranger or Pokémon Pinball with affection despite argu
