Not Your Run-of-the-Mill "Pokémon" Game Quiz

Answer: Pokémon Trading Card Game

The "Pokémon Trading Card Game" video game was exactly what you think it was. Building on the popularity of the battle card game released shortly after "Pokémon" hit it big in North America, the handheld game put you in the role of a card player who, heading to different gyms, needed to build a deck and battle against foes with different card types, much like a player would visit gyms in the original "Pokémon" games. Unsurprisingly, the game also released with a limited edition card for players of the actual card game.

It was a surprisingly popular and well-received title.

Answer: Pokémon Snap

"Pokémon Snap" was another surprising windfall for Pokémon at a time when platform releases in the series were scarce. Again, instead of catching and battling Pokémon, the point was to interact in a new way, in this case by taking pictures of the Pokémon in the game on beaches, in forests, in volcanoes, and even on the moon.

In seven locations, you could snap photos of about 40% of the original 151 Pokémon, in some cases triggering their appearances through different, unique means.

Answer: Pikachu

In "Hey You, Pikachu!", you could have a Pokémon of your very own on the Nintendo 64. With this game, again, there was no real combat or adventure at hand, but you could take care of Pikachu (for a year, or longer if you decided to continue). The game didn't really have much else going for it save for a rare instance using voice-recognition software on an early console.

This would later come back in a bigger way for console titles on the Gamecube and the Nintendo DS/3DS.

Answer: Pokémon Puzzle Challenge

Releasing during the second generation of "Pokémon" games (ie. "Pokémon Gold" and "Silver"), "Pokémon Puzzle Challenge" was almost like "Tetris" in the sense that it had a board of falling blocks, but it differed in that different shapes didn't need to fit together necessarily; you had to swap blocks of different colours around, like in "Candy Crush Saga" and use specific Pokémon to do certain extra things.

A similar game, "Pokémon Puzzle League", came out on the Nintendo 64 in the same year, but based itself on the anime.

Answer: Pokémon Pinball

"Pokémon Pinball", a very early series spin-off showing up on the Game Boy Color in 1999, took all of the original 151 Pokémon of the classic "Red" and "Blue" games and made them catchable, but only if you were able to succeed at games of virtual pinball, scoring points and avoiding falling into the gutter. Caught Pokémon could also be evolved by various means, but only if you could catch them by using the pinball as a Pokéball.

The game had a sequel on the Game Boy Advance, but not until "Ruby" and "Sapphire" were released.

Answer: Pokémon Mystery Dungeon

The "Pokémon Mystery Dungeon", beginning on the Game Boy Advance in 2005 and continuing through the Nintendo handheld line, was another surprise hit for the series bolstered by the "Pokémon" name alone. Once more, the goal wasn't to collect Pokémon but to play through a storyline interspersed with randomized dungeons and battles.

The games are similar to the original titles in that they're turn-based, but as a Pokémon you can't catch other Pokémon to fight with; you need to recruit them.

Answer: Pokémon Ranger

"Pokémon Ranger" was another unique alternative game running parallel to the main series. In it, you would still go around catching "Pokémon", though not in an open world, fight-through the gyms, become a Pokémon Master sort of way. Instead, you could capture Pokémon by circling them with your stylus on the Nintendo DS touch-screen, effectively roping them in like a ranger.

The game had two further sequels on the DS-- "Shadows of Almia" and "Guardian Signs".

Answer: Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness

A follow-up to another offshoot title, "Pokémon Colosseum", on the Gamecube, "Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness" was unlike the original series because it was a role-playing game in which you needed to battle Pokémon while only catching those of the shadow-type, even if they weren't typically shadow Pokémon.

This was because in the mythology of this specific game, Shadow Pokémon were those who needed their hearts purified. While the game sold well, it was not necessarily a popular title amongst purists.

Answer: Pokémon Rumble

"Pokémon Rumble", released as a semi-independent game on the WiiWare system in 2009, had you take on the role of your own Pokémon as you battled against your enemies in real-time with your fists. Because of the motion sensitivity of the Wii Remote, you could actually play fisticuffs in the game, heading through dungeons and fighting in arena battles to win.

The game didn't fare all too well critically for its mindless mechanics, but sequels showed up on the 3DS and Wii U in later years.

Answer: Pokémon Go

"Pokémon Go", backed by Nintendo but created by Niantic, became a quick mobile phenomenon in 2016 when it released on iOS and Android devices, sending people of all ages out into the world (or wherever they could get a data signal) to catch, raise, and battle Pokemon they could find out in the real world (or in their own homes). Using the touch screen on their phone and the camera feature, they could see the Pokemon on the device, throw Pokeballs, and add them to their collections.

It's claimed that in its first year, the app was downloaded more than five hundred million unique times.