Uncovering Pokemon's Hidden Gems: The Spin-Offs You Shouldn't Miss

Pokemon is an incredibly profitable franchise that has spawned numerous spin-offs throughout the years. While some of these spin-offs, such as Mystery Dungeon, have thrived and evolved, others like Conquest and Colosseum have been neglected despite significant fan demand.

Currently, the world of Pokemon spin-offs is experiencing an interesting shift towards mobile gaming. Popular titles like Pokemon Unite, Pokemon Sleep, and the phenomenally successful Pokemon GO are capturing much of the spin-off attention. However, console spin-offs are still alive and well with recent releases like New Pokemon Snap and Pokemon Legends Arceus.

Sadly, many beloved spin-offs from the franchise's past are being overshadowed and disregarded, much to the disappointment of nostalgic players yearning for new additions.

Pokemon Conquest Deserves a Chance

The combination of Pokemon's vast collection of unique monsters and their special abilities, along with the strategic RPG battle system seen in series like Fire Emblem and Final Fantasy Tactics, creates a perfect match that has remained relatively unknown on the DS. Despite its relatively small community, Pokemon Conquest deserves a sequel, if only to explore the potential that this title has displayed.

One major criticism of Pokemon Conquest is its occasional simplicity. By expanding the combat mechanics and the variety of obtainable Pokemon, a sequel could greatly improve upon the game's foundation. When Conquest was initially released, Fire Emblem was still considered a risky franchise for Nintendo in the Western market. However, just a month later, Fire Emblem: Awakening was launched in North America and became immensely popular, leading to the continued success of the Fire Emblem series. Given this success, there is no reason not to bring a new Pokemon tactical RPG to the Switch. There is certainly a market for this genre, and the recent re-releases of Advance Wars will only capture the attention of genre enthusiasts for a limited time.

Pokemon Colosseum Should Make a Comeback

Pokemon Colosseum managed to release one sequel before being put away in the vault, unlike Pokemon Conquest. Before Generation 6, both Pokemon Colosseum and Pokemon XD: Gale of Darkness served as the sole examples of what the franchise could look like in 3D. Many argue that these games actually achieved a higher level of quality compared to the main series' 3D titles thus far.

In fact, these games should have established the benchmark for the franchise going forward. It was evident to most players of this spin-off series that double battles offered the best way to experience Pokemon's combat system. They provided more variety and room for experimentation, while also addressing the frustration caused by certain moves like Protect, which often only served to unnecessarily prolong battles in single-battle scenarios. Furthermore, the level of detail in battle animations was unparalleled compared to anything the franchise offers today. This is quite surprising considering the nearly 20-year gap between Pokemon Colosseum and the more recent titles like Pokemon Scarlet and Violet.

The mainline Pokemon series has been deviating from the trail that the two Colosseum games established. Instead of building upon these games, each generation introduces new battle systems that are often underutilized and eventually forgotten, such as Gen 5's triple and rotation battles. If this is the direction that the main games will consistently follow, it would be refreshing to have a new Pokemon adventure set in the Orre region in the near future.