Top 20 Best RPG Series of All Time

#5. – Pokemon (Pocket Monsters)

# of Good Games in the Franchise: 10

Active: Yes

Pokemon took the world by storm the moment it was released. It’s shocking to look back when people thought it was a fad because the franchise is still going strong over two decades later. Heck, it’s even more popular now than it ever was. What makes this franchise unique is that it’s divided between versions which belong to different generations. Since the original Game Boy Nintendo has released at least one new generation (as well as remakes) on all of their handhelds. Developer Game Freak refines the experience a little with each iteration and they always introduce us to new creatures. When Pokemon is at it’s best it is one of the definitive RPG releases regardless of platform. At it’s worst it’s still genre defining and still beats out nearly all of the competition in terms of quality.

I absolutely love every generation of Pokemon titles. The first three are heavily nostalgic for me. Later generations are less so for me but still all are incredible. These games have you selecting a starter creature based on three elements (grass, fire, water) and embarking on an adventure wherein your goal is to beat collect Gym badges (held by Gym leaders) using your team of monsters in turn based combat. It just works, and I absolutely mean that. There is no bad game in the mainline franchise. These are my most replayed games because of how dynamic the party building (or monster catching) mechanics are. Even the modern releases are just as addictive as the originals, and the mobile edition (Pokemon Go) is great in its own right.

The Best Way to Play:

Red/Blue/Yellow on the original Game Boy are best skipped. These were remade for the GBA and are much better. Skip out on the Let’s Go titles on the Switch as these are remakes but not for the better. Besides this nuance the originals and remakes are all worth playing. Honestly, even the weaker titles in the franchise (Black/White, X/Y) are still better than just about every RPG released in their respective timeframes. There’s no better time to get into Pokemon.