Pokémon Pinball is a pinball-based game that was a spinoff in the series that was first released in Japan in what year?
1996
Title: Pokémon Pinball
Passage: Pokémon Pinball (Japanese: ポケモンピンボール , Hepburn: Pokemon Pinbōru ) is a pinball-based Pokémon spin-off video game for the Game Boy Color.  It was released in Japan on April 14, 1999, and in North America on June 28, 1999.  In it, the ball is a Poké Ball, and most of the objects on the table are Pokémon-related.
Title: Metroid Prime Pinball
Passage: Metroid Prime Pinball is a pinball video game themed after the "Metroid" series.  The game uses the graphical style and various story elements from "Metroid Prime".  It was developed by Fuse Games for the Nintendo DS handheld game console, and released by Nintendo in North America and Australia in 2005, in Japan in 2006, and in Europe in 2007.  "Metroid Prime Pinball" uses the basic mechanics of pinball, along with typical pinball items.  New mechanics are introduced, such as wall jumping and the ability to fire weapons.  The Nintendo DS's touchscreen can be nudged with a finger to alter the pinball's trajectory while in motion.
Title: Pokémon (video game series)
Passage: Pokémon is a series of video games developed by Game Freak and Creatures Inc. and published by Nintendo as part of the "Pokémon" media franchise.  First released in 1996 in Japan for the Game Boy, the main series of role-playing video games (RPGs) has continued on each generation of Nintendo's handhelds.
Pokémon (video game series) Pokémon Pinball