Pokemon Mystery Dungeon is one of my favourite pieces of media out
there, and a fanpage for it was a decade overdue on my part!

What is Pokemon Mystery Dungeon? Why is it such a big deal? An isekai! It's an isekai. I could talk about PMD all day everyday if anyone would let me, but I'll start with the bare basics. It's a series of spin-off Pokemon games where, instead of capturing Pokemon and using them as cutely decorated spell-books, every single character, including the player, are the Pokemon themselves.

In each (english released) version, you awaken in the body of a Pokemon that is either assigned to you based on a personality quiz (love that!) or that you select yourself (Gates to Infinity is the only one that forces this).

Once you're awake, you distinctly remember that you were human, but not much else.

Almost immediately you meet a regular Pokemon who's species is also chosen at the beginning of the game. This cutie will be the best friend you've ever had and will follow you to the ends of the earth if they have to. They love you!

Everything beyond this point is where each version's story goes in its own direction, though with very similar story beats and themes. My thoughts on each game are as following:

PMD2 / Explorers of Time, Darkness, and Sky (Nintendo DS)

Hands down the version with the most praise and extensive storylines (plural, there's a LOT of content here).

Sky is an extended cut of Explorers of Time & Darkness with extra missions, features, and special episodes that focus on the perspective of the various supporting cast.

PMD2 likely has some of the most genuine and emotionally driven writing you'll find in a Pokemon game (pre-sumo, this essay is old), focussing on surprising themes of mortality and self worth. It was the first video game to ever make me cry and it's been an endless source of comfort to me ever since.

PMD1 / Red Rescue Team (Gameboy) Blue Rescue Team (Nintendo DS)

PMD1 is the original installation of the PMD series and has a unique and beautifully comfy aesthetic. The story is far less developed than PMD2 but it firmly sets the foundation for the rest of the series.

Although the story is lighter and simpler, it's still much more engaging that anything you'll find in main series Pokemon (again, pre-sumo), with memorable moments and charming characters. An absolute classic!

PMDX / Rescue Team DX (Nintendo Switch)

A loving remake of PMD1 with extensive quality of life improvements and watercolour-themed 3D visuals. I personally find the 2D visuals more charming (some pokemon models are a bit un-flattering, RIP ekans and vaporeon), but as far as 3D PMD installments go, this one is really pretty.

The gameplay is very different from its original version but this is far from a bad thing, and actually makes the gameplay far more dynamic and varied. I absolutely recommend picking it up! Fair warning though but there's a bit of a difficulty curve.

PMD4 / Super Pokemon Mystery Dungeon (Nintando 3DS)

The most criminally underated installation of the entire series!

The beginning is slow and the visuals can be a bit bland, but the gameplay has all of the upgrades found in DX and the starter pool is the largest we've had yet. The story is the only version to compete with PMD2, plus the dialogue feels far more natural than in the older games (something that was improved by Gates to Infinity tbf). The plot twists the previous games' tropes too, and the partner is now the shining star (finally being given their own backstory). The beginning may be slow, but please give this hidden gem a chance!

PMD3 / Gates to Infinity (Nintando 3DS)

This is the only game in the series I've never seen the end of. This game has a lot of nice ideas and unique quirks, but sadly enough time wasn't put into it to hold up to the other installments.

The worst part is the bug that found its way into the english localization, which makes it impossible to speed up or skip the text scroll... even while navigating the menu and saving! This makes every interaction, text box and mechanic painfully slow and tedious. I really do want to beat this game one day, , but sadly I do not have the patience right now.

As mentioned earlier, the dialogue (in english, at least) is written far better than in previous games, which was refreshing. I've also heard good things about the storyline (even if the large main cast stretches it a bit thin) and I adore the paradise mechanics. Seeing my dungeon recruits walking around is really nice.