Ever Wondered Why There's Two Of Every Pokemon Game?

"We're all now used to every big-name game coming out in five differently priced versions, each containing more in-game stuff than the last, but no matter which you choose you will still be buying the same game. That's never been the case for the mainline series, starting even with its very first English-language release in 1998 with Pokémon Red and Pokémon Blue, each version subtly (but to fans, crucially) different. But have you ever stopped to wonder why? The reason is wonderfully silly."

"Creating two versions of what mostly boils down to the same game is certainly not an obvious choice. It introduces a huge amount of confusion to an unaware audience, not sure which is the most recent game or whether they're making a mistake by buying one over the other. To those familiar with the series, it's a huge feature and selling point, and deciding which version of the game you're going to buy and why is a big part of the experience."

"This caused him to recall a conversation with the creator of the Pokémon franchise, Satoshi Tajiri, about how the monster-catching games could ever outdo the success of the Mario games. Via machine translation, Miyamoto told investors, "A long time ago, Tajiri-san, the director of Pokémon, joked with me that if you want to surpass Nintendo's Mario you'll have to sell two copies of the game to each customer.""

Modern big-name games often release multiple priced editions, but Pokémon's mainline series intentionally launched paired, subtly different versions starting with 1998's Pokémon Red and Blue. Producing two near-identical releases creates consumer confusion risk but became a defining feature that encourages trading, social interaction, and decision-making about which version to buy. The strategy turned a potential marketing liability into a selling point and part of the player experience. Nintendo veteran Shigeru Miyamoto recounted that Pokémon creator Satoshi Tajiri joked the plan aimed to sell two copies to each customer, explaining the rationale for dual releases.

Read at Kotaku