What was the Japanese title of the first Pokémon video games released for the Game Boy?

The Japanese title of the first Pokémon video games released for the Game Boy was Pocket Monsters Red and Green.

Game Freak created these role-playing games, which launched in Japan on February 27, 1996. Players explored the fictional Kanto region, captured creatures, trained them, battled other Trainers, and traded Pokémon using the Game Boy Link Cable. The paired releases encouraged trading because some species appeared in only one version.

Outside Japan, the original Green version was not released in this form. Nintendo and its partners used Pokémon Red and Blue for international markets, with Blue serving as the basis for the overseas localization. This is why many international fans know the first games as Red and Blue, even though the Japanese originals were Red and Green.

The games introduced the original 151 Pokémon and established the core formula that still defines the main series: exploration, collection, battling, evolution, and trading.