>>51517513>Pokemon MansionDiscovering the history of Mewtwo and imagining what other research may have taken place there has always been one of the coolest moments in the series, plus it has the eerie, unique area music that's menacing but also mysterious. The gate switches get a bit annoying but the rest of the area makes up for it.
>Team Rocket HideoutI think there’s something more sinister about Team Rocket’s base being disguised as a souvenir shop rather than a casino even if the idea is basically the same. Plus, Lance taking no shit from the grunts and forcing the way open is great to see. The way Pokemon are used both as landmines and power units within the base really conveys how abusive Team Rocket is in a way that no other team is shown to be. The grunts are ridiculously weak but that’s just the nature of Johto’s level curve.
>Abandoned ShipThe idea of travelling through flooded compartments to explore sections that have been cut-off from the rest of the ship is the best use of Dive in the franchise and the music is a perfect blend of majestic and somber. I like that it's an entirely optional area that the player is never railroaded into exploring. It's a shame there aren't any Pokemon to discover there, would have been a great place to hide some Ghost types.
>Distortion WorldIt’s broken, it’s barren and it’s bizarre. Surfing on the ceiling and riding down a waterfall flowing upwards were great ways of showing how reality just doesn’t work the same there and the vortex of clouds in the background gave a great impression of how vast the place might be. The music is both unnerving in some parts yet almost whimsical in others, which fits really well since the Distortion World isn’t meant to be scary, just different. Unfortunately the emptiness is a double-edged sword since there really isn’t much to do there other than the Strength puzzle, which leaves the area feeling a bit shallow.
