What were the Japanese titles of the first Pokémon games released for Game Boy?

The first Pokémon Game Boy games were titled Pocket Monsters Red and Green in Japan.

They were released together in February 1996 and formed the starting point of the main Pokémon video-game series. Players explored Kanto, collected Pokémon, battled Gym Leaders, challenged the Pokémon League, and traded creatures with another Game Boy through a Link Cable.

A Japanese Blue version followed later as a special edition with revised artwork, dialogue, and programming. The international Red and Blue releases were based largely on this improved Blue version rather than directly on the original Red and Green cartridges.

The Japanese Green title is a frequent source of confusion because it was not released internationally in its original form. Outside Japan, Nintendo used Blue as the partner version. The paired releases also encouraged trading: no single cartridge contained every obtainable Pokémon, so completing the collection required connecting different versions.