On what date did the original Pokémon games launch in Japan for the Game Boy?

The original Pokémon games launched in Japan for the Game Boy on February 27, 1996.

The first releases were Pocket Monsters Red and Pocket Monsters Green, developed by Game Freak and published by Nintendo. They introduced the central ideas of catching, training, battling, and trading Pokémon.

The launch was delayed from December 21, 1995, because related merchandise was not ready. The games initially sold slowly, but word of mouth and the discovery of the hidden Pokémon Mew helped sustain interest.

International releases used Pokémon Red and Pokémon Blue rather than the Japanese Green version. Pokémon Yellow followed later and was designed to reflect the anime’s popularity, including Pikachu as the player’s companion.