Originally released in Japan on July 11, 2013, the game is based on the Yōkai of Japanese folklore, who are said to be ghosts and apparitions that cause mischief in daily life.

Nate returns home with Whisper, only to find that the Yo-kai Dismeralda has caused their parents, Lily and Aaron, to argue.

Upon realizing a Yo-kai is responsible, Nate finds and befriends Tattletell, who inspirits Katie and allows her to reconcile with her friend.

Nate and Whisper decide to head to Timers and More, run by Mr. Goodsight, to upgrade their watch and be able to befriend stronger Yo-kai.

The next day, after Bear uses his mother's ring as bait to catch the "king of Catfish Pond" and accidentally loses it, his father instructs him to retrieve it.

Soon after, they hear rumors about development at Flower Road and encounter Kyubi, who blackmails them into entering the construction zone at night.

The defeated doctor cries out to Chairman Squiddilius McKraken, his master, who begins transmitting through Draggie's crystal ball, revealing himself to be a dissident Yo-kai politician who has been gathering support in the Yo-kai World to launch an invasion of the human world and subjugate humanity.

They are confronted by the Yo-kai who saved them from Slimamander, Venoct, who states Lucas was Enma's heir and was hidden to protect him from McKraken.

Whisper, knowing that more evil Yo-kai will take advantage of McKraken's death, closes the elevator linking the two worlds, which Nate reluctantly accepts.

[3][4] At a time where Level-5 were already successful with resonating with younger gamers with multiple IPs such as Inazuma Eleven and Ni no Kuni, many of the Level-5 staff expressed interest in creating, in Level-5 CEO Akihiro Hino's words, the new Doraemon; a title that would "be loved by many people over a long period of time".

I researched what would give something appeal and longevity, and pondered what would be relatable to people and developed the open world RPG that children could play, Yo-kai Watch.

I think title's popularity is the fruits of trial and error.Yo-kai Watch was officially unveiled to the public by Level-5 at the 2011 Tokyo Game Show, where it was announced during the company's annual Level-5 Vision press conference.

[8] Prior to the release of Yo-kai Watch in Japan, a game demo was made available to download from the Nintendo eShop on July 3, 2013.

[9] After the success of the game and its sequel, Yo-kai Watch 2, a localization of the franchise in territories outside Japan was seriously considered.

[22] The series has run continuously on TV Tokyo since then, including a rebranding as a "Second Season" featuring new characters[23] from the upcoming Yo-kai Watch 3 game.

[24] As part of efforts to localize Yo-kai Watch in western countries, the series was broadcast in the United States; dubbed in English and premiered on Disney XD on October 5, 2015, a month before the release of the game in North America.

Editor Reona Ebihara wrote that "the game gradually expands its feature set as you go, opening up this very unique world that's easy to melt into."

She also commented positively of the game's use of the Nintendo 3DS' stereoscopic features and its "simple and deeply strategic" battle system.

Fellow reviewer Urara Honma corroborated Ebihara's remarks, stating that the battle system felt "really great to control".

She further wrote, "You won't run into much frustration playing this game, and while it does feel like one big fetch quest at times, the charms of the story more than make up for that.

Awards, the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences nominated Yo-kai Watch for "Handheld Game of the Year".

[49] The games would go on to become the best selling games in Japan for 2014, selling over 3 million copies by December and outperforming Nintendo's Pokémon franchise with Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire and Capcom's Monster Hunter franchise, with Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate.