Pokémon Red / Blue / Yellow

One hundred fifty-one — that number is known today by anyone who ever held a Game Boy. Pokémon Red and Blue weren't just a game; they were the door to a phenomenon that within a few years swept the entire world, and it began quietly right here, on a gray handheld console.

The idea ripened in Satoshi Tajiri's head for a full six years. He was inspired by his own childhood hobby — catching insects — and a desire to give city kids the feeling of hunting and collecting creatures. Studio Game Freak was meanwhile teetering on the edge of collapse during development, and the game was effectively saved by two things: the support of Shigeru Miyamoto and the brilliant idea of releasing two slightly different versions. To collect all 151 Pokémon, the player had to connect via a link cable with a friend and trade — a business and community move the likes of which no one had seen until then.

The game itself is a surprisingly deep JRPG. You catch creatures in Poké Balls, train them, evolve them, and build a team that has to hold its own in turn-based battles built on a system of strong and weak types. Beneath the accessible surface hides a layer of tactics that players still dissect today. And then there's the legendary layer of secrets: the "MissingNo." glitch, which could scramble your saved game, or the Pokémon Mew, which one of the developers supposedly hid in the code without management's knowledge. These stories have become an immortal part of gaming mythology.

The Yellow version then tied in with the ongoing animated series — your loyal companion became Pikachu, who followed you at every step and changed the mood as well as the difficulty. It was a clever response to how quickly Pokémon had become an unstoppable media machine.

And just how big did it end up being? Pokémon is today the most profitable media franchise in the world — it has surpassed both Star Wars and Marvel. Movies, a card game, anime, toys, dozens of other video games. All of it grew from this single cartridge, where you first chose between Bulbasaur, Charmander, and Squirtle.

Why play it: This is where it all began — the roots of the planet's biggest entertainment franchise, and it's still a catchy, addictive, and surprisingly timeless RPG.