Of all the Pokemon, none are more useless (well, usually), or more beloved for its uselessness, than Magikarp. And now, after all this time, the useless gasping little fish has finally gotten his very own, very strange game.
Magikarp Jump, out today for iOS and Android, is really a stripped down version of Pokemon. The idea is that you find and train up your Magikarp to leap high in the air, which is apparently a sport in some parts of the Pokeverse. Basically you feed your Magikarp, make it hit things to level it up, and then take it to the tournament to get it leap in the air. Aside from training, you barely have to do anything, which makes it very kid-friendly. Also kid-friendly: while there are in-app purchases, the game isn’t pushy about them, and it’s easily playable without them, much like Pokemon Go. Kids above toddler age able to handle simple games on their own should easily enjoy this.
Yes, the whole thing is patently ridiculous, but the game knows this; the utter futility of making these poor fish leap is a running gag all throughout. The game is designed to be very bright, friendly, and accessible; it feels quite a bit like the silly Game Boy games of yore, which is entirely the point. But it also is incredibly addictive, as you can pull “better” Magikarp out of the water, train them up and keep making them leap. With eight levels to beat, and gags to find, this will probably eat up your time for a while.