When was Pokémon Blue released to general retail in Japan?

Pokémon Blue was released to general retail in Japan on October 10, 1999.

Pokémon Blue has an unusual release history. It first appeared in Japan as a special mail-order edition for CoroCoro Comic subscribers on October 15, 1996, several months after Pokémon Red and Green.

The early Blue version included updated artwork and revised dialogue. Its code, script and artwork later formed the basis for the international Pokémon Red and Blue releases, which were adapted from the Japanese versions and renamed for overseas markets.

Because of this history, two dates are associated with Japanese Pokémon Blue: October 15, 1996, for the limited subscriber edition, and October 10, 1999, for general retail. The retail date is the answer to this question. This distinction is a useful reminder that Pokémon’s international version names do not map perfectly onto the original Japanese release sequence.