I don't know. Pokemon lost me when they started releasing new Pokemon every year or so and they obviously started running out of names for them. When it was 150 pokemon, it seemed like a reasonable goal. yeah, it was gonna take me a while but I DID want to catch and train them all. Then 250 pokemon; alright, I said. I suppose I'll have to invest more time. Then 300-ish. Okay, I said to myself. You're pushing it but I'll bite.
After that, I just gave up. I'm basically buying the same game over and over again whereas with Minecraft you buy it once and you're good to go. You can buy extra stuff but that's optional. So yeah, not only is Pokemon a timesinker but also a moneysinker. Minecraft just wants to take your time.
As far as playing with others, again, Minecraft is the better choice. With Pokemon, you're stressing out about what pokemon to get and you need to find a friend who actually has a version that has the pokemon you want and hope that he/she already captured it AND is willing to trade it in. But of course you gotta give something just as cool in return.
With Minecraft, you just gotta sit down, build stuff and relax. Your friends can jump in and out at any given time and nothing changes. It's all about just having a good time. Stop playing the game for a good while and it will still be there waiting for you. You'll be just as familiar with the game as when you first played it.
Yes, Pokemon has tons and tons of merchandise out there besides the games (Cards, movies, toys, etc.) but again, it's mostly meant to be a moneysinker. Watching the anime doesn't really help you beat the game because, well, we have the internet for that (And seriously, the anime is still the same basic concept as when it first aired so...I haven't watched it in 5 years but I'm guessing I'm not missing on much, except on maybe Ash looking younger and suddenly getting big, bright, brown eyes.
That's why I personally prefer Minecraft over Pokemon; Minecraft is addicting but it allows you to quit at any time and come back later (Much later if you want) and everything will still be the same. Miss a single generation of Pokemon and you're screwed.
