Pokemon red and green were first released exclusively in Japan in February 1996 with a special version titled Pokemon blue release later that year. When the games came to North America a few years later, it was just that Pokemon red and blue (before the special Yellow edition). Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen are remakes of these original games, and while some fans think LeafGreen may be an intentional reference to the original Japanese version of Green, it is not.
That's not to say Game Freak didn't have an explicit reason to name them Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen, however. As fans prepare for the release of games on Nintendo Switch consoles, many may be interested in the titles once again. But the real reason comes from the official Game Freak blog written by Junichi Masuda, Game Freak co-creator who helped launch Pokemon along with Satoshi Tajiri and Ken Sugimori in 2004.
How Pokemon LeafGreen came to be
Masuda knew about the transition to Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen would confuse some North American players, explaining that it was called “for a reason” in North America. Masuda doesn't elaborate, but it's likely that the company could use improvements from the Japanese blue version. When Masuda understood that continuing the remakes meant that the new games should be called “FireRed and WaterBlue”, he explained each reason why LeafGreen was chosen instead:
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“The leaf is a symbol of peace.”
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“Fire and water are opposite concepts, so it seems like a conflict.
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“We wanted to have a colorful drawing of Bulbasaur on the jacket.
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“The letter may not be immediately familiar to Japanese children, but it's an easy concept for children overseas.”
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“In this world of conflict, we wanted to give a name that would suggest a peaceful world.”
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As Masuda explained, it is essential to avoid any perception of “conflict” with the more modern Pokemon Gen 1 retools and instead emphasizes peace, with a leaf, in a real world full of conflict. Masuda also added that the team was happy to come up with the title and how it would work in all countries around the world, explaining that this aspect is very difficult. In fact, Masuda said that the process of naming games is so difficult due to trademark issues, among other things, but that FireRed and LeafGreen focused on simplicity and therefore didn't take as long as other games.
Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen symbolize peace
Finally, the name Pokemon LeafGreen was not a nostalgic callback to the original Japanese green version, but rather a deliberate tonal choice. Pairing FireRed and LeafGreen it reflects Game Freak's desire to present remakes as welcoming and globally unified items rather than oppositional counterparts. Of course, later Pokémon entries would tread darker storylines like Pokemon X and Y's Ultimate Weapon, but simplicity, calm and peace are at the heart of the original Pokemon games.
It will be interesting to see if there are any changes to the Switch versions of these games, but given that they are largely ports, it's not to be expected. Still, Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen they're already selling like hotcakes on Switch, perhaps showing that gamers around the world need the momentary peace these two games symbolize.
- Released
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September 7, 2004
- ESRB
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E
- Publishers
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Nintendo
