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Following a taste of world peace courtesy of Pokémon Go, there's no question that the creature-catching franchise stands as one of the most mainstream gaming titles in existence. The iconic Pikachu is just as famous as Disney's mascot, perhaps even more. The persistent frenzy surrounding card prices ensures almost daily Pokemon headlines. It would be difficult to find a pocket monster game that failed to move at least a few million units. Remarkably, fan-made Pokémon games achieve popularity every year.

However despite that ubiquity and popularity, some Pokémon games that are totally underappreciated. These are games that didn't get their fair shake, or were overshadowed by the hype of the mainline series. They're Pokémon games stuck on ill-fated consoles or services, or were early forays onto different formats. Frequently, they are Pokémon games that probably would have blossomed if they ever got sequels or contemporary re-releases. With these criteria in mind, this list will not be yet another recommendation for Pokémon Conquest or the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon series. We're digging deep.

Still, you may already know about these Pokémon games. So, before rearranging your glasses and writing 'Actually,' we can all acknowledge that these are Pokémon games for people with discerning palates, shall we?

Pokemon Ranch: The Chill Precursor

An excessive number of Pokémon games focus on the battling aspect of the series, and not nearly enough of them focus on the ordinary realities that would come with living with a companion. Admittedly, there are minor mechanics like these in recent entries—players may play with your monsters in bases. But I am dying for a Pokémon game more in the vein of Nintendogs or The Sims.

My Pokemon Ranch (2008) for the Wii is not that game. The downloadable-only title is most accurately viewed as the antecedent to Pokemon Home; that is, as a repository to hold monsters from different games. Critical reception from its release said Ranch was a poor if not truly ugly game. It's not my goal to argue against 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 farm where your Mii avatars—get this—simply hang out with your pals. The interactions with Pokémon were basic, 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 start of a beautiful franchise built on the daily joys of living your life 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 complete potential. One might cry 'help us, Pokémon Pokopia!' but it's also known that the upcoming Switch exclusive is as much a puzzle game as it is a life simulation.

Ranch was released long before Stardew Valley kicked off the enduring trend of comfort gaming. It was prior to the rise of idle games, and the Let's Play normalization of watching games you aren't playing. Most people never understood that Ranch's proposal to observe your creatures as much as you interact with them wasn't to hide a lack of substance. In truth, Ranch's meticulous design was so extraordinary, a Twitch stream dedicated to running the game 24/7. The streamer who operates the channel states that, after almost twenty years of experiencing the game, he even now has not seen everything that is in it. Justice for Pokémon Ranch: no one understood you in 2008.

Pokémon Duel: The Strategic Tabletop Game Gone

Are you aware that Pokemon once had an licensed tabletop game with action figures? Pokemon 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 freemium phone games. Duel had the hallmarks of a gacha title where players could pay to win—and there was motivation to do so, given the slow progression 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, years after Duel's servers were pulled. "Honestly I think this game was superior to TCG Pocket in terms of complexity, approachability, design, and content in general," another commenter wrote. "I truly believe if it came out now people would be engaging with it more than GO and Pocket together."

Regrettably, Duel's early release was marred by server issues. Technical problems, alongside Duel's predatory monetization model, gave people little reason to return. If, by some miracle, The Pokémon Company chose to resurrect this franchise, it's unclear things would play out differently. The unique board structure made for a fantastic strategic challenge for the handful of players who played Duel, but that board is also a daunting visual mess.

Pokemon: Magikarp Jump: The Whimsical Gem

Wow, why don't more Pokémon games relax a little and have some fun? Magikarp Jump (2017) was a uncommon case of The Pokémon Company giving its blessing a game with a premise so silly, it was verging on internet meme. And when we're dealing with a franchise where trainers go out with a team of ineffective monsters who literally can't do anything, it's surprising we don't have more Pokémon games that poke fun at themselves.

Within Magikarp Jump, the player is charged with breeding the best possible version of the notorious fish. I'm not talking about a Magikarp that can kick your butt. These are 'karp raised to enter contests to see who can jump the highest. I'm not a fan is how Magikarp Jump, like many mobile games, forces the player to pause before they can train their Magikarp further. But it is clear throughout the experience that Select Button loved and understood the community love around Magikarp.

Nowhere was this more evident than in Jump's brutal random events, 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 one might wish the mainline games 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 dozens of colorings and patterns for a roster 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 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.

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With numerous mainline entries and spin-offs, it's probable that I didn't mention that one Pokémon game you absolutely adore but argue that too few people played. I know that some people remember games like Pokémon Ranger or Pokemon Pinball fondly despite argu