3 Pokémon Games That Didn't Get the Appreciation They Deserved
In the wake of a glimpse of global harmony courtesy of Pokémon Go, it's undeniable that the monster collecting series stands as one of the most ubiquitous video games in existence. Pikachu is every bit as famous as Disney's mascot, if not more so. The continued frenzy around card prices guarantees almost daily Pokémon headlines. You'd be hard-pressed to find a Pokémon game that failed to move at least a couple million units. Remarkably, fan-made Pokémon games achieve popularity every year.
However despite that ubiquity and popularity, some Pokémon games that are totally overlooked. These are titles that failed to receive their fair shake, or were overshadowed by the hype of the mainline series. These are Pokémon games stuck on ill-fated platforms or services, or were early forays onto new mediums. Frequently, they are Pokémon games that probably would have flourished if they ever got follow-ups or modern remakes. With these criteria in mind, we won't be offering yet another recommendation for Pokemon Conquest or the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon series. We're going beneath the surface.
Nevertheless, these might be these Pokémon games. So, before adjusting your spectacles and writing 'Well,' we can all acknowledge that these are Pokémon games for people with discerning palates, agreed?
Pokemon Ranch: The Relaxed Forerunner
An excessive number of Pokémon games focus on the combat aspect of the series, and not nearly enough of them focus on the everyday aspects that would come with owning a pet. Sure, modern titles include small features like these in modern games—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 Pokémon Ranch (2008) for the Nintendo Wii is not that game. The digital-only title is best seen as the precursor to Pokémon Home; that is, as a repository to store monsters from various titles. Critical reception from its release said Ranch was a bad if not truly ugly game. I'm not here to dispute these claims, but it behooves me to say Ranch might be the nearest we've come to a everyday life Pokémon game.
True to its title, the game is set on a farm where your Mii avatars—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 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 coexisting with a small creature. However, because The Pokémon Company can charge a subscription for Pokémon Home now, it's likely we will not get a Pokémon Ranch game realized to its fullest potential. One might cry 'help us, Pokémon Pokopia!' but I also know that the upcoming Switch exclusive is just as much a puzzler as it is a life simulation.
Ranch came out well before Stardew Valley sparked the lasting craze of comfort gaming. It was before the proliferation of idle games, and the Let's Play normalization of watching games you aren't playing. Most people never understood that Ranch's concept to watch your critters as much as you play 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 continuously. The individual who operates the channel maintains that, after almost twenty years of experiencing the game, he still has not encountered everything that is in it. Justice for Pokémon Ranch: nobody understood you in 2008.
Pokemon Duel: The Tactical Tabletop Game Gone
Are you aware that Pokémon once had an licensed board game with miniatures? Pokemon Duel was the 2016 attempt to digitize the physical experience in a more approachable format. Duel was also, sadly, one of Pokémon's earliest ventures into the world of freemium mobile gaming. Duel had the trappings of a gacha game where players could spend for advantage—and there was incentive to do so, given the slow progression for new pieces.
These questionable mechanics masked a tragic reality: Pokémon Duel was an excellent tactical game with Duel today. "I can’t express how much I loved and miss this game," one YouTube comment states, seven years after Duel's servers were pulled. "Truly I think this game was superior to TCG Pocket in terms of depth, approachability, design, and content 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 return. If, by some miracle, The Pokémon Company chose to resurrect this franchise, I'm still not certain things would play out differently. The unusual game board made for a great tactical experience for the handful of players who played Duel, but that board is also a daunting eyesore.
Pokémon: Magikarp Jump: The Whimsical 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 premise so silly, it was bordering on shitpost. And when we're dealing with a franchise where trainers go out with a team of useless monsters who literally can't do anything, it's surprising we don't have more Pokémon games that poke fun at themselves.
In Magikarp Jump, the player is tasked with breeding the best possible version of the notorious fish. I'm not talking about a Magikarp that can kick your butt. 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 pause before they can train their Magikarp further. But it is evident throughout the experience that Select Button appreciated and got the community love around Magikarp.
Nowhere was this more evident than in Jump's merciless random occurrences, where your Magikarp was just as likely to improve as it was to get snatched by a Pidgeotto. Apart from the clever dialogue, Magikarp Jump also experimented with other things I wish the mainline games would do, like offering a wide variety of the same species of monster. I know it's not practical for any Pokémon game to have dozens of variations for a compendium of over a thousand creatures, as Magikarp Jump does... but one can dream.
Magikarp Jump was not a especially complex or profound 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. And I'm just saying: Mewgenics will almost certainly be in the running when Game of the Year season arrives.
Given dozens of core games and derivative titles, it's probable that I didn't mention that particular Pokémon game you totally love but argue that too few people played. I know that some people remember games like Pokemon Ranger or Pokemon Pinball fondly notwithstanding argu
