Satoshi Tajiri might be a recognized name to some since he invented one of the if not the most successful game franchises in history. Born in 1965 in Tokyo, as a boy he loved going into the country and exploring nature–a rather interesting thing considering that many kids from Tokyo don’t usually go into nature. But these jaunts into the countryside spurred something in Tajiri that led to his creation.

Tajiri’s interest in nature led his parents to leave the urban jungle of Tokyo proper and move to a greener suburb so that he could pursue his nature interest. His parents also knew that the suburbs were much healthier for the family. It was there that the young man became somewhat of an amateur entomologist. In fact, entomology was his dream area of study when he grew up, he said. His friends in the neighborhood and at school nicknamed him “Dr. Bug” (Dokutā bagu, ドクター・バグ), and his insect collection soon overwhelmed his bedroom at the family’s suburban home. His mother despaired of him because he would come home with his pants and coat pockets bulging with samples and creatures. She always did the washing very carefully, she later said, because she didn’t know what she might find in his pockets.

However, as Tajiri grew, so did the suburbs. Urban sprawl began to creep in. The insect habitat disappeared, and, with it, Tajiri’s ability to study bugs. That’s when the now-teenager turned his attention to video games. Arcades were only then coming into popularity and the first primitive home computer video game systems were making their way to the market. And Tajiri pursued knowledge of video games with the same passion that he’s pursued bugs when he was younger. He loved the game Space Invaders. The young man decided to create a Space Invaders clone game as well. He also enjoyed the game Dig Dug, a rather simple game with repetitive motion. His interest in games led him to skip school too often, so often in fact that he had to get the Japanese equivalent of a GED. Instead of entomology at university, Tajiri decided to get a 2-year technical degree that would teach him how to better build video games.

In an effort to share his rapidly increasing knowledge of video games to an eager market, Tajiri wrote and produced a video game magazine called Game Freak in 1981. In the editions of the magazine, he shared game tips, easter eggs, and even taught readers how to code their own games if they so chose. He collaborated with an artist who illustrated his stories and columns. Game Freak soon became a success, so much so that it allowed him and his small staff enough income to begin to branch out into the actual creation of video games. Tajiri realized that most video games were lacking in quality and in the ability for gamers to share their experience.

That belief in shared video experience led Satoshi Tajiri back to his first love, bugs. Taking two Nintendo Game Boys, Tajiri connected the two hand-held devices and created a way to swap characters he and his magazine illustrator created, basically allowing games to collect characters they liked. He presented his collaborative idea to Nintendo, but the company didn’t quite understand how gamers would accept the idea of collaborating and swapping characters. However, they were impressed with Tajiri’s passion, and they decided to invest in him. And the result, as I said, is one of the most lucrative game concepts ever created; it made the company billions and made Tajiri a multi-millionaire.

And to think that swapping tiny game characters all began with a little boy going bug hunting back in the Tokyo suburbs. Those pants that he brought home filled with bugs, the little “surprises” his mother used to find in the pockets when she washed his clothes, those were the inspiration. Tajiri’s mom called them “pocket monsters.”

We call them Pokémon.