With the closing of the 3DS and WiiU eShops, even morePokemongames are being lost to time. New fans won’t be able to purchase these games first-hand anymore; the only way to obtain these games legitimately is to buy them from secondhand sellers.
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With so many games in the Pokemon franchise released over the past few decades, its no wonder that the older games are being pushed aside for newer releases. Of course, if you own the older games, either physically or digitally, where applicable, you may still play them today. Below, we’ll take a look at some of the best Pokemon games that you can’t buy anymore, as well as a few that are completely unavailable to play.
6Pokemon Picross
Picross is a logic puzzle game that involves filling in cells on a grid to create a larger picture, using numbers as hints. Pokemon Picross was a 3DS eShop exclusive game that combined the Picross and Pokemon series, allowing you to solve puzzles featuring your favorite Pokemon, then catch and use them to help you solve more puzzles.
As an eShop exclusive game, Pokemon Picross is no longer available to purchase, and can’t be obtained second hand, as there are no physical copies. If you are lucky enough to have this game on your system, you’ll still be able to solve its charming puzzles.
5Pokemon Emerald
Pokemon Emeraldwas the third game in the the third generation of Pokemon games, featuring added content, features, and Pokemon from its predecessors, Ruby and Sapphire. Pokemon Emerald is a Game Boy Advance game, meaning the only way to obtain it is to pay tons of money for a used copy.
However, even if you are lucky enough to have a copy of the game, there’s a high chance that some aspects of the game can no longer be experienced. If you’ve ever seen a warning about the internal battery running dry, you may find that time-based events like evolving Eevee into Umbreon or Espeon, or Shoal Cove’s tides no longer work. This is because of the physical cartridge’s internal battery, which will physically run out of charge after a while.
4Pokemon Platinum
Like Emerald, Pokemon Platinum is the definitive third version for the fourth generation Pokemon games, adding content and Pokemon from Diamond and Pearl. Platinum was orignally released in 2009 for the DS, and has remained a fan-favorite since then.
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If you still have your physical copy of the game, you can still play it, but players that are looking to experience one of the best Pokemon games have sadly missed the boat. Used copies go for hundreds of dollars from third-party sellers, with a high chance of the cartridge being a fake, making searching for this game even more difficult.
3Pokemon X and Y
Pokemon X and Y were the first mainline Pokemon games released for the 3DS, back in 2013. These games also marked the series' first 3D mainline entries, a trend which would continue until the present. X and Y added several features that would set trends for future Pokemon games, like the Fairy-type, form-changing gimmicks like Mega Evolution, and trainer customization.
With the closing of the 3DS eShop, you can now only buy these games used. However, even if you get your hands on a used copy, you may want to be cautious when playing. The original launch of X and Y featured a game-breaking bug that would result in save file corruption if you happened to save in a certain section of Lumiose City. This was quickly fixed through a software update, but currently there’s no telling when you will no longer be able to update your games through the eShop, which could mean this bug affecting players in the future.
2Pokemon Dream Radar
Pokemon Dream Radar is a 3DS eShop exclusive game that used the 3DS’s gyroscope and cameras with augmented reality to project Pokemon and items into the real world. By moving around your 3DS, you may catch Pokemon and obtain these items, then connect to Pokemon Black and White 2 to transfer them.
Dream Radar was a great way to get exclusive legendaries and items that didn’t appear in Black and White 2, like Dialga, Palkia, and Giratina, and evolution stones or rare candies that were difficult to obtain otherwise. However, with the closing of the 3DS eShop, you won’t be able to get Dream Radar anymore.
1Pokemon Rumble Series
The Pokemon Rumble series is a series of spin-off games that featured beat em' up combat in which you control wind-up Pokemon. The first game in the series, Pokemon Rumble, was released exclusively for the Wii shop, with sequels on the 3DS, WiiU, and even a mobile game for iOS and Android.
Sadly, the Rumble series has been largely forgotten, with the Wii, WiiU, and 3DS games getting limited physical releases or no physical releases at all, meaning some of the games in the series can no longer be purchased. The mobile game, Pokemon Rumble Rush, was shut down in 2020, meaning the game can no longer be played at all.
