Top Pokemon Games You Should Try Now in 2018!!!

Pokemon has been around for more than 20 years now, and without a doubt, it still manages to entice not only the fans but also newbies. Now, the franchise has expanded to over seven generations and will soon be unveiling its eighth generation of Pokemons.

Last Month, the Pokemon Company and Nintendo have revealed two new Pokemon Games that will be coming out. 

The first game is the traditional Role Playing game that the Pokemon franchise is known for. The game will be released in two versions namely - Pokemon: Let's Go, Pikachu! and Pokemon: Let's Go, Eevee! It will be coming to the Nintendo Switch and have various features such as Pokemon GO Mobile integration, Couch Co-op game play and also a Pokeball designed controller.

The second game that was revealed was Pokemon Quest and it has already been released for the Nintendo Switch and it's free to download. The game is a mashup of Minecraft and Pokemon Rumble

So I thought that now would be a good time to brush up my old consoles and dive back into the world of Pokemon once again. And why not recommend some games in the process to my beloved readers. So, let's get straight to it....

The Pokemon Games You Should Definitely Try Now:

1. Generation II - Pokemon Gold, Silver, Crystal, HeartGold & SoulSilver:

Platform: GameBoy Color, Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console
Genre: Role Playing

Pokemon Generation II Games, is without doubt my most favorite set of Pokemon Games, particularly, Pokemon Crystal. Pokemon Red, Blue and Yellow served as a solid foundation for the future of the Pokemon games franchise. And the second generation just improved upon its predecessors and polished the game format to almost perfection. In addition to the features in Red, Blue and Yellow, Generation II featured, for the first time in any game, a Day and Night cycle. This meant that players would be able to encounter specific Pokemons at specific times. Apart from this, it also introduced the Breeding System. 
The most important point was that the game, even though took place in the Johto region, later allowed the players to return to Kanto region, with its own set of Gyms and challenges. Generation II was initially released as Pokemon Gold and Pokemon Silver. Later an improved version called Pokemon Crystal was released which added an additional Battle Tower, for those die-hard Pokemon Trainers.

Later on, Remakes of Pokemon Gold and Silver were released as Pokemon HeartGold and SoulSilver respectively, for the Nintendo DS. These remakes included all the features of Gold, Silver and also Crystal, along with updated graphics. Also the remakes brought back the feature in which your Pokemon can follow you around, outside of its Pokeball.
Given the popularity of these Pokemon games, Nintendo has re-released Pokemon Gold and Silver on the Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console.

2. Generation III - Pokemon Ruby, Sapphire, Emerald, Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire:

Platform: GameBoy Advance, Nintendo 3DS
Genre: Role Playing

Pokemon Generation III was brought over to the Gameboy Advance, which featured fully colored graphics, Contests, Team battles and more. The Contests depended on your Pokemon's Nature and behavior, which brought an entire new game-play format to the game and its future iterations.

Later these Pokemon games were remade into Pokemon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire for the Nintendo 3DS, which featured 3D graphics and also a change in the game's story.

3. Generation VII - Pokemon Sun, Moon, Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon:

Platform: Nintendo 3DS
Genre: Role Playing

Pokemon Generation VII is perhaps the game that changed the Pokemon formula the most, compared to all the other Pokemon games over the years. Pokemon Sun and Moon was set on the islands of Alola and they pretty much stripped out the gyms and replaced them with island trials and Totem Pokemon, which are nothing but over-sized and overpowered Pokemons. They even removed the highly frustrating HM's (Good riddance!!!!). The game featured some of the best graphics of all the Pokemon games.

Almost an year later, two follow-up games called Pokemon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon were released for the Nintendo 3DS. These games gave a different retelling for the base story line. Apart from that, it was pretty much a remake.

4. Generation V - Pokemon Black, White, Black 2 & White 2:

Platform: Nintendo DS

Genre: Role Playing

This Generation was well received for its great story-line compared to the previous generation IV's disappointing plot. Even the sequels proved to deliver a story that was engaging and entertaining.

This generation also saw the change in the way how you use TM's, which made TM's usable more than once. This however made the game less challenging as you could pretty much overpower all your Pokemon lineup.

Later, two sequels, Pokemon Black 2 and White 2 were released for the Nintendo DS. These games were two years after Pokemon Black and White and offered a brand new story. It also featured some changes like the city from which you start in. Overall, it still feels quite different compared to Black and White and allowed new players to dive into the game without the need to play the previous games.

5. Generation VI - Pokemon X & Y:

Platform: Nintendo 3DS
Genre: Role Playing

The first set of games to come to the Nintendo 3DS, were a visual and graphical upgrade to the Pokemon RPG franchise. Apart from this, it also brought new Pokemons, a new Pokemon type called Fairy, the concept of Mega-Evolution and Player customization (which didn't feature much of customization options.)
Personally, I liked the concept of Mega-Evolution, however I felt that the concept was ripped from another familiar franchise, which I believe Pokemon fans out there, are aware of.

6. Generation IV - Pokemon Diamond, Pearl, Platinum:

Platform: Nintendo DS
Genre: Role Playing

The first game to feature 2.5D graphics with its release on to the Nintendo DS. However the initial games, Diamond and Pearl, were not games that most Pokemon fans remembered. One reason being that the series was starting to become stale. These were however later addressed in the next generation i.e. Generation V. An updated version called Pokemon Platinum was later released to compensate for the failures of Pokemon Diamond and Pearl.

7. Generation I - Pokemon Red, Blue, Yellow, FireRed & LeafGreen:

Platform: Gameboy Color, Gameboy Advance
Genre: Role Playing

The originals have always occupied a special place in my heart. One reason  being that it was the very first Pokemon game that I have played. And for me, returning back to it, is truly nostalgic. However for newcomers, It could be nothing but a less-than-satisfying Pokemon game as it would pretty much be a bare-bone version of the latest games. But to me, it always tends to bring out the Pokemon Trainer within me.

Later, Generation I was remade into Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen for the Gameboy Advance.

8. Pokken Tournament:

Platform: Nintendo Wii U, Nintendo Switch
Genre: Fighting

What do you get if you combine Pokemon and Tekken. That's right, Pokken Tournament. And that's just what it is, a Pokemon game in which you play as Pokemon battling out other Pokemons in a Tekken Style Brawl. And it feels awesome!!! However the game has a limited roster of fighters (23 playable Pokemons). The game is only available for the Nintendo Wii U and Nintendo Switch.

9. Pokemon Stadium Series:

Platform: Nintendo N64
Genre: Fighting

Pokemon Stadium takes the Battle System from the core Pokemon games and focuses on giving the players the chance to become the very best Pokemon Trainer. It ripped out the world exploration and story and entirely focused on the Battling aspect. Also, to make sure that the players don't get bored, Pokemon Stadium featured some unique and cool mini-games.
Pokemon Stadium 2 further improved upon the base game and also featured Generation II Pokemons.

10. Pokemon Mystery Dungeon Series:

Platform: Gameboy Advance, Nintendo DS, Nintendo 3DS
Genre: Turn-Based Role Playing

So far you have been playing Pokemon RPG Games as Pokemon Trainers, but now, in this game, you play your way as a Pokemon. Pokemon Mystery Dungeon series comprises of 6 games which has been released across the Gameboy Advance, Nintendo DS and Nintendo 3DS. You are designated a Pokemon at the start of the game based on a quick personality test. The game-play is turn based. It feels quite different as you play as a Pokemon from the traditional Pokemon games out there.

11. Pokemon Ranger Series:

Platform: Nintendo DS
Genre: Action Role Playing

This game series is similar to the main stream Pokemon games, but in this case, you don't play as a Trainer who is out to catch them all, rather you play as Ranger who is out to save them all. That's right, your job is to protect Pokemon, the people and the regions.
Released for the Nintendo DS, it involves you to tame Pokemons (not capture them!) and use their special abilities to help and save others and complete objectives. A total of three games were released.

12. Detective Pikachu:

Platform: Nintendo DS
Genre: Puzzles

TA totally unique spin-off Pokemon game that came out just recently. It features a young boy named Tim who joins up with a Detective who happens to be a Pikachu. Now the both of them are out to solve cases and mysteries similar to the Ace Attorney series. The puzzles and challenges featured in the game are not that challenging and the story is pretty "Mmmh" in my opinion. But it is an interesting different take on a Pokemon game.

13. Pokemon GO:

Platform: Android and iOS
Genre: Role Playing

The recent entry in the Pokemon games franchise, Pokemon GO has opened the Pokemon world not only to its fans but also new players. The game brought Pokemon over to our world through our smartphones and it was an instant hit. This is also the ideal game for people of this generation as people are always on the move. Over the past two years, Pokemon GO has won the hearts of millions worldwide. And the developers, Niantic are continuously updating and rolling out new features and Pokemons to the game.

Did I miss any of your favorite games ? If I did please feel free to share it, in the comments section.

Until next time,

Yours Truly,

CasualGamer