The Pokémon franchise has been around for over 20 years on many media and media. If the main Pokémon games are on Nintendo consoles of the moment, this has not prevented the Japanese firm from experimenting on the market of smart phones, smartphones for a few years.
So here are the Pokémon games available on your mobile device to date.
Whether you or your child play on tablet, iPad, iOS, iPhone, Android, Samsung, Google device… there is something available.
The vast majority of mobile games require you to know how to read, and are intended for a single player by phone, tablet. Most games are recommended from 7 years old, or even 10 years old, because of their reading level and complexity.
Only Pokémon Smile to encourage the little ones to brush their teeth, Pokémon Playhouse and Pokémon TV, to watch the cartoons, can be appropriate for the little ones.
Careful! Apart from the 3 games for small cities just above, all the other games here are free to download BUT have microtransactions and aggressive monetization!
That is, many stratagems are used in each game, to entice the player to spend real money to “improve” his gaming experience. If he does not pay, he is constantly held back and frustrated in his progress.
If the player does not want to pay, he has the choice to sometimes get bonuses by watching advertisements for other games or products, not necessarily related to the application he is playing.
All the games here are available on the iOS App Store and Google Play.
Only Pokémon TCG exists only on the App Store or Google Play for tablets and is not compatible with cell phones, smart phones (There is indeed far too much information to display). The game is downloadable on PC though.
The games are sorted alphabetically:
Pokémon Café Remix (formerly Café Mix)
Pokémon Masters EX (formerly Pokémon Masters)
Pokémon Café Remix (formerly Café Mix)
This is a puzzle game. It is a free-to-play, so a free game to download and play but with microtransactions (purchases with real money, in the game).
The principle of the game is to connect Pokémon icons together to make them disappear. It is then necessary to make the largest combinations, sometimes in limited time, sometimes a certain number of combinations to succeed in the levels and progress in the game.
The game is only playable in portable mode of the Nintendo Switch, and only with the touch screen.
Available on the iOS app store and Google Play and on the Nintendo eShop digital store on Nintendo Switch consoles.
Requires to know how to read
For one player.
Price: Free
Pokémon Go
The game event of 2016 continues to be played nowadays by millions of players. It’s about walking around your city physically with your cell phone in hand, in order to hunt and capture the Pokémon that appear on your screen in the game. The game is therefore based on the geolocation of your device to offer you challenges, and different creatures to capture depending on your location.
There are several hundred Pokémon to catch, and the developers are constantly adding content.
When you’ve caught a few hundred Pokémon, the game frustrates you by telling you that you no longer have room in your bag or inventory to store them. The same goes for the items you pick up constantly. To increase fictitious inventory sizes, you naturally have to pay with your credit card.
If the game is well done, it has caused a strong craze that has sometimes prompted some people to go to dangerous places to catch certain creatures.
Monetization is a bit aggressive, but it’s normal for developers to be paid for their work. The game grossed US$1.23 billion in 2020 (Source).
This is a good excuse to take walks with your child or youth. To be played in moderation.
Needs to know how to read.
For one player.
Price: Free
Pokémon HOME
It is a cloud-based application (online servers) that allows you to transfer and store Pokémon. For example you have recovered Pokémon in Sword and you want to transfer them to the next Brilliant Diamond title? You transfer them from Sword to Pokémon HOME. Then you can transfer them from Pokémon HOME to Brilliant Diamond.
In each game, the number of Pokémon that can be stored and used is limited. But it’s much bigger on Pokémon HOME.
However there are free functions, and functions available via Premium subscription to be able to access everything in Pokémon HOME.
Only 30 Pokémon can be stored in the free version compared to 6000 Pokémon in the subscription version.
If you play several episodes of the main series, the application and its subscription quickly become indispensable. Especially if you undertake the almost infinite quest to catch them all.
In the case of a single game, it is not useful.
The mobile app allows you to manage and view Pokémon previously stored on Nintendo consoles.
Available on the iOS app store and Google Play and on the Nintendo eShop digital store on Nintendo Switch consoles.
Price: Free for basic functions
Premium subscription for 30 days: $3.99 + taxes
Premium subscription for 90 days: $6.99 + taxes
Premium membership for 365 days: $21.99 + taxes
Pokémon: Magikarp Jump
A humorous game about breeding the Pokémon Magikarp (Magicarpe in French).
Magikarp is a fish-like Pokémon that can’t do anything in all the games, cartoons where he appears. He can’t attack, defend himself properly, This is a funny parody Pokémon voluntarily.
On the other hand, when he evolves at a certain level of experience he evolves into Gyarados (Leviator in French), a very powerful and terrifying Pokémon.
Pokémon: Magikarp Jump is a small adventure game where you train your Magikarp to become the best Magikarp. To win leagues and tournaments, Magikarp must jump as high as possible. To evolve the multiple characteristics of the chosen Sin Magikarp, bonuses are accumulated as we go.
However, by dint of playing more and more, the game will ask the player to wait to use this or that object or function. If he doesn’t want to wait a few minutes, hours, or days, he always has the option to pay with the credit card stored in the phone.
Includes ads.
Needs to know how to read.
For one player.
Price: Free
Pokémon Masters EX (formerly Pokémon Masters)
Pokémon Masters EX is an adventure game for collecting and fighting Pokémon in 3 by 3. We also “collect” Pokémon trainers because each of them has affinities with specific Pokémon, which makes the creatures more powerful.
No exploration here, especially fights, dialogues between Pokémon trainers and menus to improve Pokémon. It’s a very repetitive title.
As usual, to progress more and faster, you have to pay with real money.
Needs to know how to read.
For one player.
Price: Free
Pokémon Playhouse
A game for children from 3 to 5 years old. No need to know how to read or calculate. Children click all over the house and trigger interactions with the various elements. They also learn the different names of Pokémon. They also listen to stories. Many mini-games and interactions are available with a selection of Pokémon with more childish graphics than usual.
There doesn’t seem to be any real money required in the game. It is mainly an occupation for children, to make them discover the universe and get them used to Pokémon. Then they will be more inclined to consume the other products of the franchise.
From reviews on the Google Play Store, it seems that the app no longer works on many devices.
For one player.
Price: Free
Pokémon Quest
This is an adventure game where the Pokémon you choose go to face other Pokémon in multiple environments.
It is a free-to-play, so a free game to download and play but with microtransactions (purchases with real money, in the game).
The principle of the game is the choice of Pokémon, their skills, and how to customize them so that they are powerful enough to pass the levels. Pokémon automatically move during the exploration phases and will themselves head to wild Pokémon in the environment to attack them… Excuse me… attack. The player can choose between 2 attacks to launch for each Pokémon of his team of 3, at any time.
At first, the progression is very easy, pleasant, and easy, and the more you play, the slower the progression is and the player then has to wait for a certain amount of arbitrary time to continue, or… pay.
The game is playable on the TV or in nintendo Switch handheld mode, with the touchscreen or controllers.
Available on the iOS app store and Google Play and on the Nintendo eShop digital store on Nintendo Switch consoles.
Requires to know how to read
For one player.
Price: Free
Pokémon Smile
An app to encourage your young children to brush their teeth… in the company of Pokémon.
The game uses the camera to see your child’s toothbrush movements. Apparently, the camera can’t keep up with the person’s head movements very well.
Same as Pokémon Playhouse, it is an application to get acquainted with the universe.
There doesn’t seem to be any real money required in the game.
Requires knowing how to read or read instructions for the child.
For one player.
Price: Free
Pokémon Shuffle Mobile
A puzzle game of type “match three”, you have to match 3 heads of identical Pokémon. If you’ve played Candy Crush, it’s very similar.
Full of puzzles to perform, with many specific conditions and progressive difficulty as you go.
The sound effects of the game resemble those that can be heard in casinos on slot machines.
Includes microtransactions, in-app purchases, and ads.
For one player.
Price: Free
Pokémon TCG Card Dex
An application to consult his entire collection of Pokémon cards, scanning them one by one via the camera of his phone.
We can thus compare the characteristics, see to which extension, or collection, this or that card belongs…
AND above all, see the cards that we lack to complete our collection.
Pokémon TCG Online
A Pokémon card game that has been around for over 20 years! I played it for many hours when I was younger.
The application is very well done. Only available on tablet and PC. This teaches to practice the game, following the rules, then one can face the opponents in the game or online in card fights.
BUT there are literally thousands of cards, with expansions coming out very often. It’s infinite. There are two ways to get cards in the game: either by playing the game a lot, or by buying the real cardboard physical cards in toy stores and board games.
In random physical card packs (called booster), there would be a code inside, which allows you to get a booster in the video game. The booster of the real cards, and the booster of the video game, will have different cards.
On the other hand, if you buy a physical deck with a theme, or a set of fixed cards, the same cards will appear with the code included, in your video game.
Buying random cards or items with real money in video games has been very poorly accepted by players, and several governments have determined that they are gambling. They then banned this practice.
Pokémon TCG Online bypasses this, only allowing the purchase of random physical cards in game stores.
Includes ads.
For one player.
Price: Free
Pokémon TV
An application for the Nintendo Switch that allows you to watch some cartoons, animated series and Pokémon movies.
Includes ads.
A bit like a free Netflix dedicated to Pokémon.
Price: Free
Pokémon Unite
A multiplayer arena fighting game (MOBA). Each of the 5 players chooses a different Pokémon and makes up a team that will face an opposing team located on the other side of the arena.
Other similar games are League of Legends, DOTA 2 and Heroes of the Storm.
Fortunately Pokémon Unite is much more affordable and easy to learn than the 3 games mentioned, and the games last only 10 minutes instead of 30 to 45 minutes. It involves scoring points by eliminating the opposing Pokémon and then counting them by validating them in the opposing goals.
The game would be very good if it didn’t encourage players to spend real money to buy additional Pokémon and upgrades that allow them to have an advantage over other players. In short, the more you pay, the more you are advantaged over opponents. This is the definition of a “pay-to-win” game.
And the prices are very expensive. Each Pokémon costs about 15 CAD, there are of course many to use, and new ones are constantly being added.
Playable exclusively online.
Available on the iOS app store and Google Play and on the Nintendo eShop digital store on Nintendo Switch consoles.
For one player.
Price: Free
Which game to choose?
In this situation, it’s more complicated than on a Nintendo Switch console. This is mainly due to the economic model of each of these applications.
First of all, agree with your child, young how much he has the right to spend in the game of his choice and how often.
To introduce toddlers to the franchise, Pokémon TV , Pokémon Playhouse , and Pokémon Smile are adapted. That way, they’ll constantly ask you to buy Pokémon toys and other goodies, like I did at their age. 😀
Young fans of the card game will have a lot of fun with Pokémon TCG Online , and Pokémon TCG Dex . Be careful though, new cards come out very regularly, and this can make passion expensive.
Pokémon Café Remix , Pokémon Shuffle Mobile are good puzzle/puzzle games fun. As usual, pay attention to built-in expenses.
Pokémon Home is only useful for players of Pokémon adventures on Nintendo consoles.
Pokémon GO is the main game on mobile, it can motivate everyone to go out for a walk.
Personally, Pokémon Unite is the game that interests me the most because it is an action game, competitive with depth. It is recommended from 10 years old however and pokémon and items inside the game are very expensive.
The rest of the apps and games are anecdotal. They can be entertaining, though.
