What was the original Japanese name of the first Pokémon video game releases?

The original Japanese name of the first Pokémon video game releases was Pocket Monsters.

The first games were titled Pocket Monsters Red and Pocket Monsters Green in Japan. The franchise’s Japanese brand remains Pocket Monsters, while Pokémon is the internationally familiar romanized name. The shortened form was used for overseas branding and became the standard name in many languages.

The games were developed for the Nintendo Game Boy by Game Freak and released in Japan on 27 February 1996. Their central mechanics involved catching, training, battling, and trading creatures. The paired versions contained different Pokémon, making communication between players part of the intended experience.

The name can be confused with the later international title Pokémon Red and Blue. Japan’s first pair was Red and Green, not Red and Blue; Blue was released later in Japan and became the second color in the main international versions. These naming differences reflect different release strategies rather than separate generations.