The 8 Most Fun Pokémon Games of All Time, Ranked

Published Aug 27, 2026, 5:09 PM EDT

Lucas Kloberdanz-Dyck is a writer for Collider. He grew up creating lists, stories, and worlds, which led to his love of anime and video games. He attended Sheridan College where he earned an Honours Bachelor of Game Design. Lucas and his group won 1st place for technical innovation at LevelUp Toronto 2023, and he was also an intern for the Oakville Film Festival of Arts. 

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Video games are meant to be fun, among other things, but a lot of new franchises focus on hyperrealistic graphics, profound narratives, and experimental ways to play the game. While those additions are incredible and important to the evolution of gaming, some fans just want pure and simple fun. That is exactly what Pokémon offers through its many mainline and spin-off games, delivering a fun, nostalgic, and comforting experience that both kids and adults can enjoy.

However, fun isn't easily quantifiable, mainly because it is purely subjective, with many different fans having their own opinions on what they enjoy. Regardless, this list will rank the 8 most fun Pokémon video games based on aspects such as entertainment value, gameplay, design, fan opinion, originality, polish, and overall quality. Some say the franchise has failed to evolve, and others aren't a fan of the modern approach, yet Pokémon still remains the most popular franchise for one reason: it is fun.

8 'Pokémon Stadium 2' (2000)

Image via The Pokemon Company

Fans probably have the most fun on mainline entries, but there is a whole other world out there in the form of spin-offs, including Pokémon Stadium 2. Battling is half the fun in this franchise, and this game streamlines that, so all players have to do is fight. Taking place in White City, trainers select their roster and compete in a series of Stadium Cups in order to rise in the ranks and eventually face the Gym Leaders, Elite Four, and finally the Champion of the Johto region.

The first game is good, but Pokémon Stadium 2 pretty much improves everything, creating a definitive formula that players wish would be reused. Modern battle spin-offs like this one just don't hit the same, proving they had the secret recipe for fun back in 2000. Having trainers bring their actual in-game Pokémon to this title was a fun idea, plus the difficulty kept players on their toes. Not only that, but Pokémon Stadium 2 also featured plenty of mini-games for everyone to enjoy, offering loads of content.

7 'Pokémon Emerald' (2004)

Image via The Pokémon Company

A lot of the modern mainline Pokémon games suffer from their 3D format, which is why most fans will agree that the classics have the best gameplay and design, including Pokémon Emerald. Like most Pokémon games, this one follows a trainer setting out on a grand journey to become the Champion, this time in the Hoenn region. However, they are caught up in a war between Team Magma and Team Aqua, who might bring about the end of the world.

In terms of pure Pokémon gameplay, it doesn't get better than Pokémon Emerald, which perfected the formula for the mainline games. Many consider it one of the best Pokémon video games, and it certainly is fun, especially because of the Battle Frontier, one of the best additions to the mainline games. The main story is engaging and pits players against one of the best villain teams with the greatest assortment of Pokémon.

Image via The Pokémon Company

While it is true that modern Pokémon games have suffered, there are some that have excelled, including the redefining new game, Pokémon Legends: Arceus. After teleporting to the past, trainers land themselves in the ancient region of Hisui, but with the help of a smartphone, they need to complete the first Pokédex and find a way to escape. However, the region is dangerous, and the Pokémon are more vicious, making everything more difficult.

Pokémon has an issue with sticking to the same formula, even if it hurts them, but Pokémon Legends: Arceus flipped it on its head to deliver something completely different and fun. The game is all about catching and creating the Pokédex, and with revitalized mechanics to better suit this, the gameplay became 10 times more engaging. Pokémon Legends: Arceus innovated and turned a classic formula into a modern masterpiece that is one of the most fun times in the franchise.

5 'Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver' (2009)

Image via The Pokémon Company

There are many essential Pokémon games, but one of the most important is from the Johto region, and while the classic is great, this list opted for Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver. A remake of the original Gold and Silver games, it has trainers journey around the Johto region to collect the eight Gym Badges, defeat the Elite Four, and conquer the Champion.

The best Pokémon video game is heavily debated, but HGSS is probably the most essential because not only does it feature the true classic vibe of the very first games that many grew up with, but it also has the perfected 2D formula that other fans grew up with. Having two regions to explore doubled the fun, and with fantastic art, polished gameplay, and plenty of interesting creatures, it is no secret that HGSS is one of the most essential Nintendo video games.

Collider Exclusive · Universe Personality Quiz Which Iconic Universe Do You Belong in the Most? Star Wars · Lord of the Rings · Harry Potter · Game of Thrones · Star Trek

Five legendary universes. Five completely different visions of what the world could be — or already was. One of them is the world your instincts, your values, and your particular way of existing were built for. Eight questions will tell you which one.

🚀Star Wars

💍Lord of the Rings

🧙Harry Potter

👑Game of Thrones

🖖Star Trek

FIND YOUR UNIVERSE →

01

What gives your life its deepest sense of meaning? Every universe is built around a different answer to this question.

ABeing part of something larger than myself — a cause, a rebellion, a fight for freedom that outlasts me. BThe journey itself — the places I'll go, the companions beside me, the world I'll discover on the way. CLearning — unlocking what I'm capable of, understanding the world's hidden mechanics, growing into something more. DLegacy — the name I leave behind, the power I build, the mark I make before the world moves on without me. EUnderstanding — exploring what exists beyond the horizon and asking what it means to be alive in a universe this vast.

NEXT QUESTION →

02

Which kind of world do you most want to inhabit? The environment shapes who you become. Choose carefully.

AA galaxy of planets, each with its own culture — connected by conflict, trade, and the Force. BAncient lands of breathtaking beauty, deep history, and a creeping darkness at the edges. CA world hidden inside our own — full of wonder, community, and magic waiting to be learned. DA brutal, beautiful continent where power is everything and every alliance is a calculation. EA future where humanity has reached the stars — and must decide what kind of species it wants to be.

NEXT QUESTION →

03

How do you prefer your conflicts resolved? The shape of a world's conflicts tells you everything about its soul.

AThrough sacrifice and courage — someone has to make the impossible choice so others don't have to. BThrough fellowship — the impossible becomes possible when the right people walk the same road. CThrough growth — confronting what you fear, understanding what you lack, and becoming equal to the challenge. DThrough strategy — outthinking, outmaneuvering, positioning yourself so the outcome was never in doubt. EThrough dialogue — finding the third option, the peaceful resolution, the answer that doesn't require a body count.

NEXT QUESTION →

04

Who do you want beside you when things get difficult? Your ideal companions reveal the world you were made for.

AA small crew — a pilot, a rogue, a warrior — each broken in their own way, unbeatable together. BA fellowship of different kinds of people, bound by purpose and deepened by the long road. CFriends who grew up alongside me — who knew me before I knew myself, and stayed anyway. DAllies whose loyalty I've earned — and tested — and whose ambitions align with mine, for now. EA crew of brilliant, curious, principled people from every corner of known space.

NEXT QUESTION →

05

What is your relationship with power? How you seek, wield, or resist power is the map of who you are.

AI want to use it to protect — and I'm terrified of what I might become if I'm not careful. BI distrust it. The most important power in this story is the courage to give it up. CI want to earn it — through knowledge, through effort, through becoming someone worthy of it. DI want to wield it. Preferably before someone else decides to wield it against me. EI want to understand it — its structures, its limits, its ethical dimensions. Power without accountability is the real threat.

NEXT QUESTION →

06

How does your universe treat good and evil? A world's moral architecture tells you more about it than any map.

AThere is a dark side and a light side — and the choice between them is always present, always personal. BEvil is real and ancient and patient — and goodness, however small, is the only thing that can undo it. CGood and evil are real, but they live inside people — and people are complicated, always capable of both. DGood and evil are mostly a matter of perspective and proximity. Power is the only honest currency. EEvil is usually the result of ignorance, fear, or broken systems — and understanding it is the first step to solving it.

NEXT QUESTION →

07

What role would you naturally fall into? Every universe has archetypes. Which one fits you without trying?

AThe reluctant hero — ordinary origins, extraordinary moment, changed forever by the choice to act. BThe unlikely carrier — the one nobody expected to matter most, quietly bearing the weight of everything. CThe student — not yet who I'll become, learning through every mistake, growing into something the world needs. DThe player — sharp enough to see the game for what it is, ambitious enough to try to win it. EThe explorer — drawn to the unknown, driven by curiosity, most alive when standing somewhere no one has stood before.

NEXT QUESTION →

08

What do you ultimately believe about the future? The answer to this is the clearest window into which universe already lives inside you.

AThat hope is real — that even in the darkest galaxy, a new hope is always possible. CThat even the smallest person can change the course of the future, if they have the courage to try. CThat love and friendship and doing what's right will matter in the end, even when everything says otherwise. DThat the wheel keeps turning — that power shifts, winters end, and what endures is those willing to fight for it. EThat humanity — or whatever we become — is capable of extraordinary things, if we choose to be.

REVEAL MY UNIVERSE →

Your Universe Has Been Chosen You Belong In…

Your answers point to the iconic universe your values, your instincts, and your particular way of seeing the world were built for. This is where you would find your people — and your purpose.

Star Wars

You believe in the cause — in the idea that freedom is worth fighting for even when the odds are impossible and the empire is vast.

• You are drawn to the moral clarity of a universe where hope itself is a form of resistance.
• You'd find your people in the Rebellion — a ragtag coalition of true believers held together by conviction more than resources.
• Star Wars is fundamentally a story about ordinary people choosing to matter in an extraordinary conflict — and that is exactly your kind of story.
• The Force may or may not be with you. But the will to use it for something larger than yourself certainly is.

Lord of the Rings

You understand, in the deepest part of yourself, that the journey matters as much as the destination — and that the world's beauty is worth protecting even at great cost.

• Middle-earth is a world of ancient wonder, deep friendship, and a darkness that only retreats when enough small acts of courage accumulate.
• You would thrive here because you value the fellowship more than the glory — the road more than the arrival.
• Tolkien's universe rewards patience, loyalty, and the willingness to carry something heavy across a very long distance.
• Those are not burdens to you. They are simply how you move through the world.

Harry Potter

You believe that love, loyalty, and doing what's right are not naive sentiments — they are the most powerful forces in any world, magical or otherwise.

• The Wizarding World is a place of wonder hidden in plain sight, where learning is transformative and the bonds you form at school follow you into every battle.
• You would flourish here because you take both the magic and the friendships seriously — and you understand that one without the other is incomplete.
• Harry Potter's universe ultimately rewards those who choose to stand for something even when standing is terrifying.
• That choice — made quietly, without guarantee — is something you understand completely.

Game of Thrones

You see the world clearly — its power structures, its hypocrisies, its brutal arithmetic — and you are not paralysed by that clarity. You use it.

• Westeros is a world that rewards intelligence, adaptability, and the willingness to understand that every alliance is also a negotiation.
• You would survive here — possibly thrive here — because you don't confuse the world as it is with the world as you'd like it to be.
• Game of Thrones is a story about what happens when the idealists and the realists collide. You are sharp enough to know which one lasts longer.
• Winter always comes. You are already prepared.

Star Trek

You believe the future is worth building — that curiosity, cooperation, and the expansion of understanding are not just ideals but the most practical path forward for any civilisation.

• Star Trek is a universe where the questions matter as much as the answers, and where encountering something utterly alien is cause for wonder rather than fear.
• You would belong here because you are fundamentally optimistic about what intelligence and decency can achieve — while being honest about how hard that achievement is.
• The Federation is the universe's most ambitious thought experiment: what if we actually got better?
• You don't just hope that's possible. You think it's the only thing worth working toward.

↻ RETAKE THE QUIZ

4 'New Pokémon Snap' (2021)

Image via The Pokémon Company

While modern mainline Pokémon games haven't been getting the love the company hoped for, the spin-offs have been better than ever, including New Pokémon Snap. Rebooting the old game, this title follows players as they embark on a mini-roller coaster ride through scenic landscapes ranging from ashy volcanoes to whimsical forests. As they make their way through, players are tasked with taking photos of as many Pokémon as possible.

The gameplay may be very straightforward, but that applies to all Pokémon games, and that is why they are so fun. It is one of the most gorgeous-looking titles in the franchise, providing stunning backgrounds with a slew of lively Pokémon in lush locations. New Pokémon Snap is a modern masterpiece that entertains with a fun, yet simple premise that features unique situations where players can try to get the best photos.

3 'Pokémon Pokopia' (2026)

Fans were hoping that Pokémon Winds and Waves would come out in 2026, and while that didn't happen, they still got an excellent game with Pokémon Pokopia. Trainers play as Ditto, using the abilities of the Pokémon they meet along the way to turn the isolated land into a habitable place for all Pokémon. From building pathways, buildings, and beds to creating grass, placing blocks, and creating an overall vision, this game is a town-builder type game with crafting.

Graphics-wise, it is better than everything Pokémon has to offer in the 3D realm, delivering a gorgeous world with polished graphics, well-made models, and no bugs or glitches. Outside of being well-polished, Pokémon Pokopia features a cozy and relaxing vibe unlike anything else in the franchise. Fans have full agency to create whatever they want, and with charming vibes, fun dialogue, and mechanical depth, it is no wonder this is already one of the best video games of 2026.

2 'Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky' (2009)

Image via Nintendo

There are so many fun spin-off games, and this list has already featured a few, but the most fun is Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky. After players turn into a Pokémon with amnesia, they must unite with a guild and set off on an adventure into many dungeons in order to learn their past. However, the more they explore, the more they uncover, including a time-spanning conspiracy.

Mystery Dungeon is one of the best Pokémon spin-off franchises, and Explorers of Sky is arguably the most fun. The beautiful pixel art and captivating music instantly hook the player, creating an inescapable sense of wonder that is only enhanced by the rogue-like dungeon-crawling mechanics. Explorers of Sky furthers its enjoyability with a compelling narrative that is the best of the franchise.

1 'Pokémon Black 2 and White 2' (2012)

Image via The Pokémon Company

This list has proven that there are so many incredible Pokémon video games, especially the mainline entries, which hook trainers with their tried-and-true formula, and the greatest game in that lineup is arguably Pokémon Black 2 and White 2. Following the events of the first game, the remnants of Team Plasma are still haunting Unova, and it is up to the player to stop this.

Sure, there are more influential and popular Pokémon games than Black 2 and White 2, but when it comes to which is the most fun, that honor goes to this game.They perfected the timeless formula with gorgeous pixel art and animation, the best story in the franchise, polished combat, engaging exploration, and refined mechanics. Black 2 and White 2 also expanded the Pokédex, featured difficulty modes, and added lots of post-game content, proving why it is the complete Pokémon package and one of the best JRPG titles.

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