10 Games to Play If You Like Pokemon

10 Games to Play If You Like Pokemon

Welcome to MojoPlays, and today, we’re taking a look at 10 games you should check out if you love “Pokemon”!

“Cassette Beasts” (2023)

Suppose “Pokemon” retained its charming visuals from the handheld days and innovated upon how you interacted with the overworld. Enter “Cassette Beasts”, one of our favorite indie games of 2023. Rather than recruit and manage a party of monsters, your character can take on their forms by recording their moves with a classic cassette player. Not only that, you can fuse your form with another party member’s form to become a completely different monster. And yes, every combination of creatures has their own unique look. One hundred twenty monsters with fourteen thousand possible permutations between them all. As if that wasn’t enough, “Cassette Beasts” allows you to romance and/or befriend party members, potentially unlocking new abilities just like in the “Persona” games.

“Monster Hunter Stories” series (2017-21)

In hindsight, a “Pokemon” clone for the “Monster Hunter” franchise feels like it was long overdue. Instead of becoming the Hunter once more, you are now a Rider, who specializes in befriending and taming monsters rather than trying to turn them into a meal or a new skin suit. The turn-based combat is a lot simpler than the core “Monster Hunter” games, taking on a rock-paper-scissors formula. However, perfectly countering a monster with the correct type of attacks can allow you to unleash a devastating Double Attack, which is much cooler than the name might suggest. Whether you play the original game on 3DS or mobile or you play the sequel released on Switch in 2021, “Monster Hunter Stories” will show you a good time.

“Temtem” (2020)

“Temtem” might be the first largely successful “Pokemon” clone to launch, and deservedly so. Sure, there are plenty of aspects to this game that are practically carbon copies of the “Pokemon” formula. But overall, it manages to set itself apart by focusing on team-based combat. Every fight is a 2v2, meaning you’ll need to find the best pairs of Temtem to go into fights with. With one additional monster on the field, now you have to pay attention to the turn order, take advantage of moves that buff and debuff, and make the most of each turn. It’s a tougher experience than many “Pokemon” fans might be used to, but this coupled with the online functionality where you can meet, trade with, and battle other players make “Temtem” a game worth your time.

“Digimon World: Next Order” (2016)

While “Pokemon” has forever kept a family-friendly appearance since the early years, “Digimon” has found a new future in being the opposite. Those looking for a darker story but wanting to keep collecting new monsters will find solace in games like “Digimon World: Next Order”. This is if “Pokemon” really expanded upon its ideas and made something more complex. “Next Order” has you raising and training “Digimon” in a more intimate way, similar to how we had to take care of something like a Tamagotchi. To Digivolve, you need to train and feed your Digimon before you guys start trying to take on the dangerous lands of the Digital World. On top of that, the way it conducts real-time battles feels fast and fluid enough to where fights don’t overstay their welcome. And if you want a “Digimon'' game with more focus on story than petsitting, you can’t go wrong with “Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth”.

“Monster Sanctuary” (2019)

“Monster Sanctuary” is such a romp to play that we almost forgot we were making this video. Seriously, it is that fun! Rather than keeping your monsters to one track in progression, “Monster Sanctuary” gives your party their own skill trees. Every time you level up, you’ll get a skillpoint to either unlock a new attack, a new spell, a new passive ability, or even upgrade a pre-existing skill. It plays a bit more like what you’d expect from modern RPGs with this system in place as well as the equipment you earn and how you can mold monsters into specific classes. Plus, rewards are based on your overall performance in a fight, and this can determine what pool of rewards you’ll get to choose from, possibly leading to rare and powerful equipment. There are so many layers here that you might wind up getting sucked into “Monster Sanctuary” as we did.

“World of Final Fantasy” (2016)

On the surface, a “Final Fantasy” game centered on catching monsters like Game Freak’s famed franchise sounds way too bizarre for Square Enix to want to attempt making such a game. However, “World of Final Fantasy” makes it work and goes beyond in making its combat more distinguishable. While you will be recruiting new Champions and Mirages of “Final Fantasy” characters from previous games, the key mechanic here is stacking. Stacking characters on top of each other can affect their stats and selection of abilities. This becomes crucial in balancing out the strengths and weaknesses of your party, especially when dealing with big baddies at higher levels. Plus, the “Maxima” expansion loads the game up with even more Champions and Mirages to recruit as well as the ability to switch out the player characters, Reynn and Lann, with other heroes in battle.

“Palworld” (2024)

In case the name doesn’t ring a bell, this was the “Pokemon” clone that went viral after showing some psychotic player behavior. Bash the crap out of creatures to make them your “Pals” so you can boss them around and have them help you build and manage a base of operations. You’ll go from something as simple as growing a small berry plantation to eventually assembling your own assault rifles to go and terrorize the world. In other words, its “Pokemon” if a tween edgelord from 2012 was in charge of making the next game, and surprisingly, it is an immensely fun game despite how twisted it truly is.

“Monster Crown” (2020)

If you grew up in the old days of “Pokemon” where people argued which color was better, then “Monster Crown” might make you feel at home. In addition to designing its aesthetic around the Game Boy Color games of yore, it boasts some improvements in UI to make it feel more modern. You don’t have text boxes taking up a third of the screen. Your map is now displayed in the lower left corner. And the combat flows a lot faster than even the newer “Pokemon” games. Admittedly, it isn’t the most technically sound with monsters spawning in odd places and graphics glitching every now and again. Even so, you might want to look into “Monster Crown” as it's a tight package you can nab at a modest price of twenty bucks.

“Ooblets” (2022)

Part of the appeal in “Pokemon” for some is just how adorable some of the creatures are. How can you not love pocket monsters like Cyndaquil, Jigglypuff, or Torchic? Those seeking a monster-collecting game with a cutesy angle will love “Ooblets”. Here, you manage a farm where you can grow plant-based creatures that excel in dance-battles. Winning these dance-offs can potentially earn you a new Ooblet friend among other rewards. If farming up new friendos is your thing and you dream of a game where combat is more wholesome than violent, you can nab “Ooblets” on PC, Switch, and Xbox One for $29.99 USD.

“Ni no Kuni” series (2010-21)

Compared to the rest of the entries on this list, “Ni no Kuni” is perhaps the least similar to “Pokemon”. You can tame creatures in the first game, but the second game only gives you Higgledies that can aid you in combat. So, what’s it doing on our list? Well, it’s because of the uniquely designed creatures you’ll encounter in both “Wrath of the White Witch” and “Revenant Kingdom”. “Ni no Kuni” evokes that same sense of wonder and excitement in exploring a new area and fighting brand new monsters. Plus, it’s about as close as we’re going to get to the idea of “what if Studio Ghibli made a ‘Pokemon’ game or movie”.

What game do you feel “Pokemon” fans might enjoy? Did it make our list? Let us know down in the comments, and be sure to subscribe to MojoPlays for more great videos everyday!