Is Yo-Kai Watch a rip-off of Pokémon? In my opinion, no. The battle systems are drastically different, the respective storylines are different, etc. The fact that both are focused on collecting creatures doesn't make Yo-Kai Watch a rip-off of Pokémon. Even the animes are different. While the Pokémon anime has a central story, the Yo-Kai Watch anime is more focused on comedy instead of a story.