Fast Links
The world of Pokemon fan games is massive and it’s not uncommon for fans to discover this niche and fall deep down the rabbit hole. The massive number of these games can be intimidating, though, and it might be difficult to know where to start, or it might be tedious to find the best Pokemon fan games among a pile of mediocre and unfinished ones.
Radical Red
Radical Red is considered among many fan game players to be one of the most complete Pokemon experiences of anything within this community. As of the most recent patch in August 2023, nearly every Pokemon through Gen 9 is available along with a vast majority of moves up through the Isle of Armor DLC and even sorely missed features in the current main franchise like Mega Evolutions. It is a little disappointing that this enormous number of features is caged within just the Kanto region, but it is a really fun (and oftentimes challenging) way to revisit the classic title.
Too Many Types
If there’s a Pokemon fan out there who’s thought to themselves “This is a great series, if only it had 40+ more types,” then this is exactly what they’ve been looking for. Pokemon Too Many Types is a GBA Emerald hack that adds ridiculous types like Silly and Gamer to create a fan game that is as hilarious as it is oftentimes challenging considering it’s effectively impossible to keep up with which Pokemon is weak or strong against what type anymore.
Shiron Castle
Shiron Castle is a short, but unique fan game with a narrative that clearly plays into a much larger world the creator is currently working on. In its brief runtime, players will encounter various Pokemon and moves from the first eight generations as they fight their way through a mysterious castle to find someone who’s been lost. It’s a nice experience for those who crave the world of Pokemon wrapped in a more compelling tale than what usually comes out of the official series.
Reborn
Reborn is the monster-catching series with a side of edginess that may be perfect for anyone looking for a bit more grit out of Pokemon. It has an original story, features through Gen 7, and a level of difficulty that’s perfect for players that aren’t big on how simplified a lot of the modern series has become.
Stranded
Stranded is a fan game that meets Pokemon with Castaway and the result is an odd, silly, and one-of-a-kind type of fan game that is able to explore a lot of unique concepts through its presentation. Since the player finds themself on a deserted island the game winds up being about survival, which means no gyms, no trainers, none of any of the regular things players expect from a Pokemon game.
Exceeded
Exceeded is a massive expansion on Pokemon Emerald that adds new locations, Pokemon through Gen 8, and quests along with built-in modes like Nuzlocke and Randomizers. On top of that, there are a ton of new moves and abilities to make this one of the most fresh-feeling Pokemon fan games out there. This fan game falls in a similar vein as Radical Red while adding a lot of the extra story and location content that that fan game is sorely missing, although Radical Red contains a lot more modern main series Pokemon features.
Fused Dimensions
Not too long ago a Pokemon fusion program went viral across the internet. Curious users raced to see who could find the strangest possible combination of two Pokemon for internet points and hilarious content. Pokemon Fused Dimensions essentially pushes that concept into an actual fan game with more than 200 different fusions of various Pokemon for players to catch, evolve, and even mega evolve. Not everything is present, that would be a monumental task, but there are some pretty strange additions in there.
XG
Pokemon XD: Gale of Darkness and its predecessor Pokemon Colosseum have a cult status among many diehard fans as some of the best games to ever bless the series. The focus on double battles along with a meatier story provides a lot of the strategic and narrative qualities that Pokemon fans are aching for more of today. Pokemon XG revitalizes the original experience with even more shadow Pokemon to catch and purify along with a number of other updates like a physical/special move split and the Fairy typing.
Expanded Sky
There are few Pokemon side games that fans miss more than the Mystery Dungeon series. Expanded Sky is a hack of one of the best games in the series, Explorers of Sky, that adds every starter up through Gen 9 along with some extras like Rockruff as potential characters for the player to choose from. On top of that, this hack adds new expansions, like the addition of Fairy type, to make this the optimal way to experience the classic side game in the modern day.
Xenoverse
Xenoverse might be one of the most original fan games to ever come out of this passionate community. Rather than a ROM hack, this is an entirely original game running on its own engine, with its own art style, in its own region, and even with its own original Pokemon. The game combines original Pokemon with existing ones and even new regional variants to make something that feels like the main series game that never was. The game was sadly hidden away from English-speaking players for a while as the game was initially only available in Italian, but a recent English translation release has allowed the world to discover this truly amazing fan-made experience.