Dragon Quest Monsters: Caravan Heart

Pokémon

The Pokémon series, being first released in 1996, precedes the Dragon Quest Monsters series by two years. However, the concept of an RPG in which the hero recruits monsters to do battle alongside him first appeared in Dragon Quest V which was originally released in 1992.

Although inarguably benefiting from the success of the Pokémon franchise, Dragon Quest Monsters had its own trademarks setting the series apart, most notably monster breeding to obtain stronger creatures. This feature was in turn copied by the Pokémon series in 1999 with the release of Pokémon Gold / Silver. Another feature introduced by DQ Monsters from the beginning was the possibility to field multiple monsters at once, a concept Pokémon wouldn't include until 2003's Pokémon Ruby / Sapphire.