Who conceived the Pokémon franchise after being inspired by Game Boy link-cable trading?

Satoshi Tajiri conceived the Pokémon franchise after being inspired by Game Boy link-cable trading.

Tajiri connected the link cable’s ability to let two Game Boys communicate with his childhood interest in collecting insects. He imagined creatures moving between game systems, turning collection and exchange into the central idea behind Pokémon.

Tajiri was not the only person responsible for the finished games. Ken Sugimori handled much of the visual design, Junichi Masuda composed music and contributed to programming, and Nintendo supported publication. Shigeru Miyamoto also mentored the project and suggested releasing two versions with different Pokémon.

The concept was first conceived in 1990, but development was lengthy. Pokémon Red and Green eventually released in Japan in 1996, after years of work by Game Freak and its partners.