What was the original Pokémon video game platform?

The original Pokémon video games were released for the Game Boy.

Pokémon Red and Green launched in Japan for Nintendo's handheld Game Boy in 1996. The system's link cable was crucial to the concept because players could connect two Game Boys to battle and trade Pokémon. That trading feature helped make the games feel social rather than purely single-player.

Later first-generation releases expanded the platform history. Pokémon Blue also appeared on Game Boy, while Pokémon Yellow supported both Game Boy and Game Boy Color. The hardware's monochrome screen and limited capabilities did not prevent the games from creating a large, memorable world.

The original platform is sometimes confused with the Game Boy Color because Pokémon Yellow used color features and became strongly associated with that system. However, the first Pokémon games were designed and released for the original Game Boy, making it the franchise's starting hardware.