I always felt like this is what Pokemon was really supposed to be.
Anonymous No.30441703 View ViewReport Quoted By:
JM (Junichi Masuda): "When we developed Red and Blue we weren't explicitly targeting children. If you look at the animation, for instance, that was meant to appeal to kids with cute designs and so on. But if you look at the game and that design, even from Red and Blue it was intended to be a game that adults could also enjoy. In that regard, there's not been any change in how we design the games.
Just like how children and adults both like playing soccer -- children might like it at first because the ball is round and colourful but adults put far more thought into it."
I'm glad I was right. I think the anime is what makes people think Pokemon is specifically targeted towards kids.