Pokémon Red and Blue

1996 · RPG · Game Boy

Overview

Pokémon Red and Blue launched the highest-grossing entertainment franchise in history. Players captured, trained, and battled creatures called Pokémon across two versions with slight differences in available species, requiring trading between versions to complete the 151-creature Pokédex. The Game Boy Link Cable was built into the game's design from the beginning.

Deep Dive

Pokémon was designed by Satoshi Tajiri and developed over six years at Game Freak. Tajiri's concept — creatures that could be captured and traded between Game Boys via the Link Cable — was inspired by his childhood insect collecting in rural Japan. The version duality — Red and Blue with different exclusive Pokémon — made the Link Cable essential for completionists. The game launched in Japan in February 1996 and in North America in September 1998, simultaneously with the anime series.

Developer Story

Pokémon was designed by Satoshi Tajiri and developed by Game Freak over six years. Shigeru Miyamoto acted as a mentor to the project during its long development. The game launched in Japan in February 1996.

Did You Know?

Pokémon's six-year development nearly bankrupted Game Freak — the team worked without salaries for extended periods and some members took outside work to survive.
The version duality — Red versus Blue — was intentional from the beginning of design: Tajiri's concept required trading to be necessary for completion, not optional.
MissingNo — a glitch Pokémon that appeared through a specific sequence of actions — became one of gaming's most famous bugs, immortalised in player folklore.
Ken Sugimori finalised the artwork for all 151 Pokémon, working from designs by a small team of artists including Atsuko Nishida and Motofumi Fujiwara.