Who created the Pokémon franchise and directed Pokémon Red and Green?

Satoshi Tajiri created the Pokémon franchise and directed Pokémon Red and Green.

Tajiri grew up in Machida, Tokyo, where he enjoyed collecting insects and other small creatures. As urban development reduced the natural spaces where he had explored, he imagined a video game that could recreate the excitement of finding and collecting creatures.

He connected that idea with the Game Boy’s link capability after learning that two systems could communicate through a cable. Tajiri pitched the concept to Nintendo around 1990, and development eventually continued with Game Freak, the company he had co-founded.

Ken Sugimori led the artwork for the original Pokémon designs, while Shigeru Miyamoto acted as an important mentor during development. Those contributions are significant, but Tajiri is the franchise’s creator and the original games’ director.