What was the original working title for the game that became Pokémon?

The original working title for the game that became Pokémon was Capsule Monsters.

Satoshi Tajiri initially imagined a project involving collectible creatures stored and exchanged through a game system. Game Freak staff commonly shortened the early name to “Capumon.” The title was later changed because “Capsule Monsters” could not be trademarked, leading to the name Pocket Monsters.

The Japanese franchise retained the Pocket Monsters concept in its branding, while international markets adopted the shortened name Pokémon. The accented spelling became especially useful because it distinguished the franchise name and reflected the contraction of “Pocket Monsters.”

The title history is easy to mix up with later merchandise and media names. “Pocket Monsters” was the immediate predecessor to Pokémon, but Capsule Monsters was the earlier working title. The development idea also changed over time: what began as a compact Game Boy project grew into a game centered on catching, training, battling, and trading creatures.