Three Pokemon Games That Were Denied the Love They Warranted
Following a taste of global harmony courtesy of Pokémon Go, it's undeniable that the monster collecting series is about as popular gaming titles in existence. Pikachu is just as identifiable as Mickey Mouse, if not more so. The continued frenzy around trading card values ensures almost daily Pokémon news stories. It would be hard-pressed to find a pocket monster game that failed to move at least a couple million copies. Even, unofficial Pokémon games achieve popularity every year.
Yet in spite of that ubiquity and popularity, there are still Pokémon games that are totally overlooked. These represent titles that didn't get their fair shake, or were overshadowed under the hype of the core series. These are Pokémon games released 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 follow-ups or contemporary re-releases. With these criteria in mind, we won't be offering yet another reminder for Pokemon Conquest or the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon series. We're digging deep.
Still, these might be these Pokémon games. Therefore, prior to adjusting your spectacles and typing 'Well,' let us just agree that these are Pokémon games for those possessing discerning palates, agreed?
Pokémon Ranch: The Cozy Precursor
An excessive number of Pokémon games emphasize the combat aspect of the series, and far too few of them highlight the everyday aspects that would come with living with a pet. Sure, modern titles include small features like these in recent entries—players may play with your monsters in camps. But I am longing for a Pokémon game more in the style of Nintendogs or The Sims.
My Pokémon Ranch (2008) for the Wii isn't it. The downloadable-only title is most accurately viewed as the antecedent to Pokemon Home; that is, as a storage system to store monsters from different games. Reviews from its launch noted Ranch was a bad if not outright hideous game. I'm not here to dispute these notions, but it behooves me to say Ranch might be the nearest we've come to a everyday life Pokémon game.
As the name suggests, the game takes place on a farm where your personal Miis—get this—just relax with your Pokémon 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 cockfighting. In a just world, Pokémon Ranch would have been the start of a beautiful franchise built on the simple pleasures of coexisting with a small creature. However, because The Pokémon Company can collect a fee for Pokémon Home now, it's likely we will never see a Pokémon Ranch game realized to its complete potential. I'd say 'help us, Pokémon Pokopia!' but it's also known that the upcoming Switch exclusive is as much a puzzler as it is a life simulation.
Ranch was released well before Stardew Valley sparked the lasting craze of comfort gaming. It was before the proliferation of idle games, and the Let's Play popularization of watching games you aren't actively controlling. Most people never understood that Ranch's proposal to watch your creatures as much as you play with them wasn't to hide a shallow core. In truth, Ranch's attention to detail was so extraordinary, there's a Twitch stream focused on running the game 24/7. The individual who runs the channel states that, after almost twenty years of playing the game, he still has not seen everything that is in it. Justice for Pokémon Ranch: nobody understood you in 2008.
Pokemon Duel: The Tactical Tabletop Game Lost
Are you aware that Pokémon once had an official board game with miniatures? Pokémon Duel was the 2016 effort to adapt the physical experience in a more approachable format. 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 spend for advantage—and there was motivation to do so, given the lengthy grind for new figures.
All of these poor design choices masked a sad truth: Pokémon Duel was an excellent strategy game with Duel today. "I can’t express how much I loved and miss this game," a YouTube comment states, seven years after Duel's servers were shut down. "Truly I think this game was better than TCG Pocket in terms of depth, accessibility, game design, and features in general," another commenter declared. "I am convinced if it launched now people would be engaging with it more than GO and Pocket combined."
Unfortunately, Duel's early release was plagued with connectivity problems. Technical problems, alongside Duel's scummy business model, gave people little reason to come back. Should a revival occur, The Pokémon Company decided to revive this franchise, it's unclear 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 daunting visual mess.
Pokémon: Magikarp Jump: The Whimsical Experiment
Man, why don't more Pokémon games relax a little and have some enjoyment? Magikarp Jump (2017) was a rare instance 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 go out with a full belt of ineffective monsters who literally can't do anything, I'm shocked we don't have more Pokémon games that laugh at themselves.
Within Magikarp Jump, the player is tasked with raising the ultimate version of the infamous fish. This isn't about a Magikarp that can win battles. These are 'Magikarp raised to enter competitions to see who can jump the highest. One drawback is how Magikarp Jump, like many mobile games, requires the player to wait before they can improve their Magikarp further. But it is clear throughout the experience that the developers appreciated and got 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 eaten by a Pidgeotto. Apart from the great writing, Magikarp Jump also tried out other things one might wish the core series would do, like offering a diverse range of the same type of monster. It's understood it's not practical for any Pokémon game to have 30 different colorings and patterns for a compendium of over a thousand creatures, as Magikarp Jump does... but one can dream.
Magikarp Jump was not a particularly sophisticated or deep game, but the kernels of genius were there. Sharply written events with unpredictable results 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 2026 GOTY season arrives.
With numerous core games and derivative titles, chances are that I didn't mention that one Pokémon game you totally love but argue that not nearly enough people played. It's acknowledged that some people look back on games like Pokémon Ranger or Pokemon Pinball fondly notwithstanding argu
