Top Ten Worst Cities and Towns in the Pokemon World
Like my last featured list, this covers the cities and towns in the many Pokemon games but also talks about the amenities that may make them unsuitable for long-term living. Usually it all has to do with living conditions in general, such as weather, crime, or otherwise. Again this list got inspired by a Youtube video that talks about this stuff. This will not talk about the towns and cities as depicted in the anime, but rather the games. And how realistically they are terrible places to make a living in.
Starting the list off with Cinnabar Island, which sounds like a neat little resort area, especially in the anime. But in the games, you have a Center, a Mart, a Gym, a Research Lab, and an abandoned mansion overrun with Pokemon. Where are the houses? Are there any? None I see in R/B/Y or even FR/LG. It gets worse, you know how there's a volcano on the island as depicted in the anime? There's not one in R/B/Y/remakes, but in G/S/C/the remakes, the volcano blew up the entire island, where only the Center remains. So this area is #1 on the list because of the fact that it actually was destroyed and there's no suitable place to live anywhere.
There's going to be plenty of Hoenn locations, so we'll start with Pacifidlog Town first. A small town built entirely on rafts with log bridges connecting to the small houses here and there. Seems fun for a resort, but terrible for long-term living. You have water Pokemon around the area, the wave splashes can seep into the houses, and speaking of water, how can the homes be powered? Fire would burn out, and electricity would be dangerous to use in these parts. Not to forget that in a huge storm, Pacifidlog would definitely not last.
In the Gen-7 games, Po Town is just a town overrun by Team Skull, the evil organization of those games. The town shows all the hallmarks of a criminal-overrun town, there's graffiti everywhere, cars in odd places, and it's nighttime often. Even the Pokemon Center is overrun by the organization. No ordinary civilian would want to live in such a corruptible spot!
I never knew this town even EXISTED until I played Sun & Moon via citra for the first time. I've been there only once during my gameplay, then never returned there again.
Towns with strange legends are bound to be on the list somehow, so let's see what Gen-6's Geosenge Town has to offer. Seems okayish, but there's also a big base of operations for Team Flare, not a good look! Also when the ultimate weapon, it creates a crater pretty much destroying the town's upper half. Ouch, not a good look for this place after that occurs, and it doesn't even get rebuilt.
The treetop life seems like it could be a wonderous place and the design like most Hoenn locations is spot-on but that's where the good stuff ends. One person in the town mentions a major problem, bug Pokemon like to fly through windows. That's not even getting to the idea that there are only ladders to the houses, and to even cross over, so for those who can't climb ladders in any way, you're not going anywhere! Fortree's also in the middle of two particular routes that have stormy weather, and when you factor in the open windows, this probably isn't a good getaway location after all.
You knew that a town just filled with Arctic climates would be on here so let's go with Snowpoint City. Several factors are in play, the Arctic climate and the distant location. Meaning that for trainers that have to go get their seventh badge (and I've already mentioned the dangers of the Snowpoint gym already) they have to cross through Mt. Coronet and two snowy routes where hail and blizzard conditions are! Realistically, you have to be crazy prepared to make it to Snowpoint, and you STILL can't take your jacket off any time soon.
Again, the remote location is the big issue here. That and for trainers to really get here without the flying route, there's only one option, go through Ice Path. Remember what I said about the ice? And the ledges in the routes below prevent you from accessing it from the south, so really, you have to brave the harsh conditions. That's not even getting to the fact that Blackthorn's gym has lava and there's a creepy cave full of Dragon trainers. It's a totally weird place of several dynamics but none that would benefit a traveler.
Should I really explain this one? Much of what was said about Snowpoint applies here. The description even says "The city of everlasting winter." There are people crazy enough to live in these conditions.
This one was real close to my original remix but was left out. To be honest, this town isn't ENTIRELY as bad as the others, it is small and quaint, but I think we all know the reason why one wouldn't live here, and that would be the Pokemon Tower. Filled with the dead souls of Pokemon that may just end up haunting residents and such.
Once again, this is discounting the anime stuff, because at least the anime will depict some areas properly. We're talking about the games and do you think this place is a city? It's like Cinnabar Island post-volcano eruption, there's few that could consider this a city. All there is is a Pokemon Center and the Pokemon League. That's not even enough for a town. And to have Victory Road bisect this "city" makes even less sense.
We're now going with a location that seems like a great city, but it's just too darn big. Bigger is not always better, and it's very easy to get lost in and around Lumiose City. Realistically, there's bound to be a few dark alleys, even when much of the city is supposed to be lit up, it's just way too big for some people to handle. Yep. While it probably wouldn't be as crime-ridden as Po Town, anything could be bound to happen.
This one it helps to understand the weather in the region. Between this and Lavaridge Town, they are both close to Mt. Chimney, a volcano that spews a ton of ash. There is one route that seems to have a lot of ash on it, Route 113, and right next to it is Fallarbor Town. Lavaridge, by comparison, is next to Mt. Chimney but on a side that doesn't receive the ash, while the ash blows towards Fallarbor. This town is rather small but then again it's not a viable place to live because of the way the wind blows the ash.
The best thing about Sootopolis is actually what it was inspired by, the island of Santorini in Greece. That place has some unique architecture around the rocks and all. It's also actually an accessible place for a tourist destination. Sootopolis however has a big problem, it's literally a city in a crater and has the issue of accessibility, as trainers need the seventh gym badge and the ability to Dive to even enter the place, just so that they can fly to it later on. Meaning diving into the water or flying are the only ways in and out of Sootopolis. Economy-wise, this city won't last long, and there are bat Pokemon in the Cave of Origin, plus residents will likely not get family visits all that often.
Spikemuth reminds me of the large indoor flea markets some places have. It's interesting, but it's not a viable location for crops or other amenities. They have to basically get their imports from elsewhere.