3 Pokémon Games That Were Denied the Love They Warranted
Following a taste of world peace courtesy of Pokemon Go, it's beyond doubt that the monster collecting series stands as one of the most ubiquitous video games in existence. The iconic Pikachu is every bit as famous as Disney's mascot, perhaps even more. The continued excitement around trading card values guarantees near-daily Pokemon news stories. You'd be hard-pressed to find a pocket monster game that didn't sell at least a couple million copies. Remarkably, fan-made Pokémon games achieve popularity annually.
However despite that pervasiveness and fame, there are still Pokémon games that are totally underappreciated. These represent games that failed to receive their proper due, or were overshadowed by the excitement of the core series. They're Pokémon games released on ill-fated consoles 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 contemporary re-releases. With these criteria in mind, this list will not be just one more recommendation for Pokémon Conquest or the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon series. We're going beneath the surface.
Nevertheless, these might be these Pokémon games. So, before adjusting your spectacles and typing 'Actually,' let us just agree that these are Pokémon games for people with discerning palates, agreed?
Pokemon Ranch: The Cozy Forerunner
An excessive number of Pokémon games focus on the combat aspect of the series, and far too few of them focus on the ordinary aspects that would come with living with a companion. Sure, there are small features like these in modern games—players may play with your monsters in camps. However, I'm 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 most accurately viewed as the precursor to Pokemon Home; that is, as a storage system to hold monsters from different games. Reviews from its launch noted Ranch was a poor if not outright hideous game. I'm not here to dispute these notions, but it compels me to say Ranch might be the nearest we've ever gotten to a slice-of-life Pokémon game.
As the name suggests, the game takes place on a ranch where your Mii avatars—get this—just relax with your Pokémon pals. The interactions with Pokémon were basic, and a lot of the appeal was watching what your monsters might do when they're not being forced into battle. Ideally, Pokémon Ranch would have been the beginning of a wonderful franchise built on the simple pleasures of living your life with a tiny companion. But since 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 fullest potential. I'd say 'help us, Pokémon Pokopia!' but I also know that the upcoming Switch exclusive is just as much a puzzle game 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 viewing games you aren't playing. Most people never realized that Ranch's proposal to observe your critters as much as you interact with them wasn't to hide a lack of substance. In actuality, Ranch's attention to detail was so extraordinary, there's a live stream dedicated to running the game continuously. The individual who runs 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: nobody knew what to do with you in 2008.
Pokémon Duel: The Strategic Board Game Lost
Are you aware that Pokemon once had an licensed board game with miniatures? Pokémon Duel was the 2016 attempt to adapt the tabletop experience in a more approachable form. Duel was also, sadly, one of Pokémon's first forays into the world of free-to-play phone games. Duel had the hallmarks of a gacha title where players could spend for advantage—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 superb tactical game with Duel today. "Words cannot describe how much I adored and miss this game," one YouTube comment reads, years after Duel's servers were pulled. "Truly I think this game was superior to TCG Pocket in terms of complexity, accessibility, game design, and features in general," another commenter declared. "I truly believe if it launched now people would be playing it more than GO and Pocket combined."
Regrettably, Duel's initial launch was plagued with connectivity problems. Bugs, alongside Duel's scummy business model, gave people little reason to come back. Should a revival occur, The Pokémon Company chose to resurrect this franchise, I'm still not certain things would end better. The unique board structure made for a fantastic strategic challenge for the few folks who played Duel, but that playing field is also a daunting visual mess.
Pokemon: Magikarp Jump: The Absurd Experiment
Man, why don't more Pokémon games relax a little and have some enjoyment? Magikarp Jump (2017) was a uncommon case of The Pokémon Company approving a game with a concept so silly, it was bordering on internet meme. Considering we're dealing with a franchise where trainers go out with a team of useless 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 charged with breeding the ultimate version of the infamous 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. I'm not a fan is how Magikarp Jump, like many mobile games, requires the player to pause before they can train 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 events, where your Magikarp was just as likely to improve as it was to get snatched by a Pidgeotto. Beyond the great writing, Magikarp Jump also experimented with other things one might wish the mainline games would do, like offering a wide variety of the same species of monster. It's understood 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 we can hope.
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 raise a pet also describe the excellent Mewgenics. And I'm just saying: Mewgenics will almost certainly be in the running when Game of the Year season rolls around.
Given dozens of core games and derivative titles, it's probable that I didn't mention that one Pokémon game you absolutely adore but argue that too few people played. It's acknowledged that some people look back on games like Pokemon Ranger or Pokémon Pinball with affection notwithstanding argu
