>>50353248There are very little side areas in Unova during the main game. Most of them are just small rooms to get extra items. They're no Mt. Mortar or Old Chateau, completely additional areas to explore if you want to.
And yes the exploration is terrible, because you just follow a straight line until the end. You don't even get to choose the order of gyms like in older games.
Castelia City is a fucking mess of disappointment. It's not particularly bigger than previous major cities despite looking like it would be huge. It's just a bunch of ugly set dressing the pad out the empty feeling of the city. Most of the buildings are dressed as skyscrapers, yet they are basically just two stories buildings.
