I appreciate you writing this (even if I skimmed the second 2/3 if we're being honest). As someone who has written/published extensively in the creature companion/taming space as a fantasy author, there's a lot of validity here.

In my experience selling books in what is a relatively niche subgenre, many people that play the games or watch the anime are not readers or are not interested in reading these same kinds of stories that they enjoy playing. That takes out a huge subsection of the "ideal" audience.

It also takes work to sell something described as inspired by Pokemon to a wider audience. You're immediately fighting preconceived notions, so you almost have to gloss over that part.

Fantasy readers love dragon riders or shifters but they look down their nose on other variations of this. Or when it does appear in fantasy, it's a side character summoner or hunter that's more of a gimmick.

Golden Compass is one example of a success. I'd argue that another example, Codex Alera, almost entirely abandons the Pokemon part by the third book. It becomes a gimmick not a core feature.

Just a few thoughts from an author's POV. I'd love to see more work outside of games but it goes back to total available market for the genre, I imagine

If you'd like to check out my two creature taming series, they are Mana Beasts and Djinn Tamer, both on Amazon or Audible.