When people think of Pokémon games, they tend to focus on the mainline core titles that tell the canon story within the series, such as Pokémon Red and Blue. But, aside from the numerous generations in the series, Pokémon goes well beyond the call of duty to produce plenty of spin-off titles, side stories, and additional content.
With huge games running rampant like the mobile powerhouse, Pokémon GO, or cult titles from the series history, it's easy to forget that there are so many out there. So, let's check out 10 Best Pokémon Games that aren't mainline titles, but any fan should play and maybe you'll find something you really enjoy, Trainer.
10 Pokémon GO
Pokémon GO took the world by storm in 2016 and is showing no signs of stopping. Yea, this one's the gimme on the list because it's still popular and played worldwide. With constant events, millions of players, and a free-to-play model, GO is a spin-off Pokémon game done right for sure.
With recent additions like Team GO Rocket causing trouble (and making it double), they are a powerhouse of a game and it's worth a "GO" if you haven't tried it yet. Plus, it'll connect to the newest games, Pokémon Sword and Shield, via the Pokémon Home mobile app.
9 Pokémon Colosseum & Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness
Pokémon Colosseum came about as a somewhat successor to the Pokémon Stadium series. It took some of the concepts behind it and really expanded on it, even going as far as to give Colosseum a full single-player RPG mode. Taking place in the Orre Region, the game is generally considered non-canon in terms of the main Pokémon stories. Gale of Darkness just continued the story.
Of note in both games are the Shadow Pokémon, which are corrupted Pokémon that have glowing red eyes and purple auras. The protagonist has to catch them and purify them to bring them back to normal during the story. If this sounds familiar, Pokémon GO recently added the exact same kind of Shadow Pokémon to the mobile game!
8 Pokémon Trading Card Game Online
So, the Pokémon Trading Card Game Online is pretty simple. It's a digital way to play the Pokémon card game on a PC or tablet. There's no real story or any fluff. It's designed with the competitive crowd in mind.
In fact, if you use physical Pokémon cards, you've likely seen a QR code in the booster packs. Scan those and get a free booster pack for the digital game, that can be opened and used it decks just the same. Since the game is free to play, it's worth checking out if you're a fan of the more analog, physical TCG.
7 Pokkén Tournament (& Pokkén Tournament DX)
Pokkén Tournament was produced by the teams behind Tekken, which made the twist to the gameplay that it was more like a traditional fighting game. Taking on characteristics like Soulcalibur and Power Stone, Pokkén Tournament brings in several interesting playable fighters like Pikachu Libre, which was a costume for Pikachu in Pokémon Alpha Sapphire and Omega Ruby, and Shadow Mewtwo (you know, like the Shadow Pokémon from Pokémon Colosseum).
Originally on the Nintendo Wii U, Pokkén Tournament DX is the Nintendo Switch version and is played competitively to this day.
6 Super Smash Bros series
Look, Super Smash Bros isn't technically a Pokémon game at all. But, it'd be a travesty to not mention the several Pokémon that are playable fighters, as well as the Poké Ball item that works similar to an assist trophy.
Not only were Pikachu and Jigglypuff included in the very first Smash Bros, but fighters like the Pokémon Trainer also offer a triple threat with Squirtle, Ivysaur, and Charizard in a single entity that can swap out on the fly. Alongside that, Super Smash Bros Ultimate included spirits as ways to buff fighters in the single-player and tons of Pokémon are available there too.
5 Pokémon Snap
All that needs to be said is that fans have been begging for a Pokémon Snap sequel for years. Originally not meant to be a Pokémon game, it made its mark on Poke-history with those printable sticker kiosks that were in Blockbuster stores. Do you want to take pictures of Pokémon and then print them out in real life? It may not seem like much now, but that was a big deal back then. '90s kids remember.
The game went across several levels that each focused on different types of elements and showed off a ton of the available Pokémon at the time. You'd take pictures, unlock secrets, and hopefully find Mew eventually.
4 Pokémon Pinball
During the early days of Pokémon, different spinoffs came around, such as the pretty decent Pokémon Trading Card Game for the Game Boy Color. But, a detailed pinball game came from that time period too. Available on the Game Boy Color as well, the game had a built-in vibration mechanism, which was notable for the weirdly-shaped cartridge and was used for tilt and paddle motions.
The game includes two different tables, which are the Red and Blue boards. Just like the mainline games, players try to catch Pokémon to fill the Pokédex albeit through pinball-methods.
3 Pokémon Mystery Dungeon Series
You're a human that's been turned into a Pokémon mysteriously and lost all of your memories. You meet a wide array of Pokémon that you can understand, and have to crawl through dungeons for turn-based gameplay.
Pokémon Mystery Dungeon, made by the folks behind the first five Dragon Quest games, is part of a bigger series of game types, including iterations with Final Fantasy's Chocobo, but it is likely among the most popular from the series. If you're looking for a Diablo-esque roguelike experience with your Pokémon, the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon games are likely to scratch that itch.
2 Pokémon Ranger
In the Fiore Region (not far from Hoenn), Pokémon Ranger is a unique take on how Pokémon games could work. In order to capture Pokémon, Rangers calm instead of battling them and then use the Pokémon for adventures in unique ways.
The first iteration of the series came out after Gen 3 and includes 213 Pokémon in the region (which means a lot of Pokémon were left out even at that point). Instead of teaming up with Game Freak, developer Creatures teamed up with Super Smash Bros and Kirby developer HAL Laboratories for this Nintendo DS game and has become a cult favorite over the years, even spawning two later sequels.
1 Detective Pikachu
Believe it or not, the recent Ryan Reynolds movie, Pokémon: Detective Pikachu, was based on a game of the same name, even if that movie was chock full of references to the games. Back in 2016, the coffee drinking Detective Pikachu teamed up with Tim to find his dad. Aside from the inclusion of Mewtwo and the "R" drug, that's where the similarities really start to diverge.
For instance, this time around, Pikachu's voice sounds a tad more like Danny Devito. The game is funny, kid-friendly, and a great puzzler for Pokémon fans. It's even getting a sequel for the Nintendo Switch, Detective Pikachu 2, coming soon!