Gaming's most prominent overarching narrative of 2026 is the 30th anniversary of Pokémon. That's fair, considering the original games spawned one of the world's biggest media empires. It's worth remembering, though, that in 1996, Nintendo had a lot going on beyond Pokémon.
1996 proved to be a pivotal year for the Japanese developer. The Nintendo 64 was the shiny new platform, but Nintendo also continued the Game Boy line with the Game Boy Pocket. Its pre-existing home console, the Super Nintendo, even had some influential gems late in its lifespan. It's the biggest year in Nintendo history, and it shaped the future of gaming as a whole.
Pokémon Red and Blue hit the United States in 1998, but the original Red and Green games debuted in their native Japan in 1996. They weren't first-party Nintendo titles, as they were released in partnership with Game Freak and Creatures. Nonetheless, it's hard to put anything from 1996 above Pokémon in terms of how valuable it would be to the company going forward.
While the games were an instant hit in the US, Pokémon's success was actually more of a slow burn in Japan. The games arrived at a time when the Game Boy was on its last legs, but Red and Green gradually grew in popularity thanks in part to rumors of the 151st Pokémon Mew, the anime, and the card game.
These factors helped flesh out the universe surrounding the Game Boy titles and bring more attention to the original games. Pokémon was successful on multiple fronts right from the start, and that helped it become the juggernaut it is today.
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The Very Best: The Untold Story Of Pokémon, Satoshi Tajiri's Global Phenomenon
a book by Derrick Rossignol.
Learn more at pkmnbook.com.