Play Pokemon Quartz Online

Pokémon Quartz is one of those fan-made hacks that actually feels like a proper, polished game—just with a bunch of weird new creatures you’ve never seen before. The first time I ran into a wild Pokémon, I had no idea what type it was or what moves it might have, and that was kind of awesome. Some of the designs are hit-or-miss (there’s a cactus thing that looks like it’s judging you), but the battles are surprisingly balanced, and the new typings keep you on your toes.

It’s still very much a Pokémon game—gyms, random encounters, that satisfying *ding* when you catch something—but the sprites have this rough, hand-drawn charm, and the trainers actually put up a fight. The story’s nothing groundbreaking, but it’s got enough twists to feel fresh if you’ve played the official games to death. Just don’t go in expecting flawless polish—this is clearly a passion project, glitches and all.

If you’ve ever wanted to recapture that feeling of not knowing what’s around the next route, Quartz does a solid job of faking it.