Who created Pokémon?
Pokémon was created by Satoshi Tajiri, founder of the Japanese game company Game Freak. The first Pokémon games, Red and Green, were released in Japan in 1996.
Tajiri grew up collecting insects in the countryside near Tokyo. As the area became more urban, he wanted to share the joy of finding and collecting creatures with children who could not explore nature as he had. He spent about six years developing the first game for Nintendo's Game Boy.
Artist Ken Sugimori designed most of the original Pokémon, and Nintendo and Creatures Inc. helped bring the series to life. Today, the brand is managed by The Pokémon Company, jointly owned by Nintendo, Game Freak and Creatures. The games launched outside Japan in 1998 as Pokémon Red and Blue.
A worldwide franchise
Pokémon grew into an anime series, a trading card game, movies, toys and the mobile game Pokémon Go, released in 2016. It is often listed as the highest-grossing media franchise in history, ahead of brands like Mickey Mouse and Star Wars. The name is short for Pocket Monsters.
Did You Know?
Ash Ketchum, the hero of the original anime, is called Satoshi in Japan, named after Pokémon's creator. His rival Gary is called Shigeru, after Shigeru Miyamoto.