Pokémon Red and Blue
Pokémon Red Version and Pokémon Blue Version are 1996 role-playing video games developed by Game Freak and published by Nintendo for the Game Boy. They are the first installments of the "Pokémon" video game series. They were first released in Japan in 1996 as and with the special edition being released in Japan later that same year. The games were later released as "Pokémon Red" and "Pokémon Blue" in North America and Australia in 1998 and Europe in 1999. "Pokémon Red" and "Pokémon Blue" combined Red/Green/Blue for release outside of Japan. "Pokémon Yellow , an enhanced version, was released in Japan in 1998 and in other regions in 1999 and 2000. Remakes of Red" and "Green", "Pokémon FireRed" and "LeafGreen", were released for the Game Boy Advance in 2004. "Red", "Blue", and "Yellow"–in addition to "Green" in Japan–were re-released on the Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console service in 2016 as a commemoration of the franchise's 20th anniversary. The player controls the protagonist from an overhead perspective and navigates him throughout the fictional region of Kanto in a quest to master Pokémon battling. The goal of the games is to become the champion  of the Indigo League by defeating the eight Gym Leaders and then the top four Pokémon trainers in the land, the Elite Four. Another objective is to complete the Pokédex, an in-game encyclopedia, by obtaining the 151 available Pokémon. "Red" and "Blue" utilize the Game Link Cable, which connects two Game Boy systems together and allows Pokémon to be traded or battled between games. Both titles are independent of each other but feature the same plot, and while they can be played separately, it is necessary for players to trade between both games in order to obtain all of  the original 151 Pokémon. "Red" and "Blue" were well-received with critics praising the multiplayer options, especially the concept of trading. They received an aggregated score of 89% on GameRankings and are considered among the greatest games ever made, perennially ranked on top game lists including at least four years on "IGN"s "Top 100 Games of All Time". The games' releases marked the beginning of what would become a multibillion-dollar franchise, jointly selling over 300 million copies worldwide. In 2009 they were declared by IGN to be the "Best selling RPG on the Game Boy" and "Best selling RPG  of all time". Gameplay. "Pokémon Red" and "Blue" are played in a third-person view, overhead perspective and consist of three basic screens: an overworld, in which the player navigates the main character; a side-view battle screen; and a menu interface, in which the player may configure their Pokémon, items, or gameplay settings. The player can use their Pokémon to battle other Pokémon. When the player encounters a wild Pokémon or is challenged by a trainer, the screen switches to a turn-based battle screen that displays the two engaged Pokémon. During a battle, the player may choose to  fight using one of four moves, use an item, switch the active Pokémon, or attempt to flee; however, fleeing is not possible in trainer battles. Pokémon have hit points (HP); when a Pokémon's HP is reduced to zero, it faints and can no longer battle until it is revived. Once an enemy Pokémon faints, the player's Pokémon that were involved in the battle receive a certain number of experience points (EXP). After accumulating enough EXP, a Pokémon will level up. A Pokémon's level controls its physical properties, such as the battle statistics acquired, and the moves it  has learned. Some Pokémon may also evolve at certain levels. These evolutions affect the statistics and the levels at which new moves are learned. Pokémon at higher stages of evolution gain more statistics each time they level up, although they may not learn new moves as early, if at all, compared with the lower stages of evolution. Catching Pokémon is another essential element of the gameplay. While battling with a wild Pokémon, the player may throw a Poké Ball at it. If the Pokémon is successfully caught, it will come under the player's ownership. Factors in the success rate  of capture include the HP of the target Pokémon, whether it is under a status effect, and the type of Poké Ball used: the lower the target's HP, and the stronger the status effect and type of Poké Ball, the higher the success rate of capture. The ultimate goal of the games is to complete the entries in the Pokédex, a comprehensive Pokémon encyclopedia, by capturing, evolving, and trading to obtain all 151 creatures. "Pokémon Red" and "Blue" allow players to trade Pokémon between two cartridges via a Game Link Cable. This method of trading must be done to  fully complete the Pokédex since certain Pokémon will only evolve upon being traded and each of the two games have version-exclusive Pokémon. The Link Cable also makes it possible to battle another player's Pokémon team. When playing "Red" or "Blue" on a Game Boy Advance or SP, the standard GBA/SP link cable will not work; players must use the Nintendo Universal Game Link Cable instead. Moreover, the English versions of the games are incompatible with their Japanese counterparts, and such trades will corrupt the save files, as the games use different languages and therefore character sets. As  well as trading with each other and "Pokémon Yellow", "Pokémon Red" and "Blue" can trade Pokémon with the second generation of Pokémon games: "Pokémon Gold", "Silver", and "Crystal". However, there are limitations: the games cannot link together if one player's party contains Pokémon or moves introduced in the second generation games. Also, using the Transfer Pak for the Nintendo 64, data such as Pokémon and items from "Pokémon Red" and "Blue" can be used in the Nintendo 64 games "Pokémon Stadium" and "Pokémon Stadium 2". "Red" and "Blue" are incompatible with the "Pokémon" games of the later "Advanced  Generation" for the Game Boy Advance and GameCube. Plot. Setting. "Pokémon Red" and "Blue" take place in the region of Kanto, which is based on the real-life Kantō region in Japan. This is one distinct region, as shown in later games, with different geographical habitats for the 151 existing Pokémon species, along with human-populated towns and cities and Routes connecting locations with one another. Some areas are only accessible once the player learns a special ability or gains a special item. Kanto has multiple locations: Pallet Town (マサラタウン Masara Town), Viridian City (トキワシティ Tokiwa City), Pewter City (ニビシティ  Nibi City), Cerulean City (ハナダシティ Hanada City), Vermillion City (クチバシティ Kuchiba City), Lavender Town (シオンタウン Cion Town), Celadon City (タマムシシティ Tamamushi City), Fuchsia City (セキチクシティ Sekichiku City), Saffron City (ヤマブキシティ Yamabuki City), Cinnabar Island (グレンじま Guren Island), Seafoam Islands (ふたごじま Twin Islands) and the Indigo Plateau. Each city has a gym leader, serving as the boss and the Elite Four and final rival battle occur at Indigo Plateau. Areas in which the player can catch Pokémon range from caves to the sea, where the kinds of Pokémon available to catch varies. For example, Tentacool can only be caught either through  fishing or when the player is in a body of water, while Zubat can only be caught in a cave. Story. The player begins in their hometown of Pallet Town. After venturing alone into the tall grass, the player is stopped by Professor Oak, a famous Pokémon researcher. Professor Oak explains to the player that wild Pokémon may be living there and encountering them alone can be very dangerous. He takes the player to his laboratory where the player meets Oak's grandson, a rival aspiring Pokémon Trainer. The player and the rival are both instructed to select a starter  Pokémon for their travels out of Bulbasaur, Squirtle and Charmander. Oak's Grandson will always choose the Pokémon which is stronger against the player's starting Pokémon. He will then challenge the player to a Pokémon battle with their newly obtained Pokémon and will continue to battle the player at certain points throughout the games. While visiting the region's cities, the player will encounter special establishments called Gyms. Inside these buildings are Gym Leaders, each of whom the player must defeat in a Pokémon battle to obtain a total of eight Gym Badges. Once the badges are acquired, the  player is given permission to enter the Indigo League, which consists of the best Pokémon trainers in the region. There the player will battle the Elite Four and finally the new Champion: the player's rival. Also, throughout the game, the player will have to battle against the forces of Team Rocket, a criminal organization that abuses/uses the Pokémon for various crimes. They devise numerous plans for stealing rare Pokémon, which the player must foil. Development. Tajiri pitched the concept of Pokémon to Nintendo's staff and was met with skepticism. They believed his ideas were too ambitious and  found it difficult to see the appeal. However, Shigeru Miyamoto saw great potential in the idea and convinced the company to go ahead with the project.<ref>