#I want this game to exist so much

[drferox]

Pokemon Snap 2 level - The Town

There’s a lot of urban Pokemon; critters which don’t seem like they belong or would adapt to a wild island without human habitation, which is difficult in Pokemon Snap because it’s supposed to be a wild place with absolutely zero humans, so what are any of them doing here? It’s already pushing it to have 800+ species crammed onto an island, so I figure it’s not pushing it that much more to have an abandoned town there somewhere. But… why is it abandoned?

I do love the liminal spaces, which is why we begin this level on the edge of a meadow, driving towards the town. There’s long and short grass with small flowers, and the pokemon we find here vary depending on whether it’s day or night. Run down wooden fences line the path into town as we meander into the abandoned town.

Spearow, the originally angry birds, hop back and forth along a fence looking mad at each other during the day. They will get closer together if you lure them with apples, but will squabble if they get too close.

A fearow cruises high above during the day too, for a decent shot from below, but will dive down onto a surviving bird feeder if you land an apple in it.

At night venonats run through the grass and across your path.

Miltank graze in the overgrown grass, and of course they will wander closer for apples. At night they’re sleeping, but you can wake them with a pester ball.

A comfey hangs out in the flowers, but is also attracted by apples. When it’s close to a Miltank, it will give it a flower crown, for extra bonus points and a very happy cow.

Following the milktank if you lure them out of the long grass, is a hard working herdier.

There is a meowth trying to sneak up on a spearow deeper in the level during the day, but at night it’s rummaging for something shiny in some debris.

A murkrow will argue with that same meowth over the shiny rubbish.

Near that rubbish is a honedge, but it only awakes and is recognizable when the pokeflute plays.

And closer to the buildings as the meadow ends, there’s a combee hive occupying space in a broken wall. Each time you hit it with a pesterball, more combees break away, but do it enough and the vespiquen comes out to defend it.

Once we reach the buildings of this town, it’s apparent these houses are in ruins, bits of them blown apart, gardens overgrown and fences falling down.

At night, a venomoth flutters around a flickering streetlight. On nights of a full moon, they are more numerous.  

During the day, a persian lounges on a roof, sunbaking.

An abra can be found in the gardens, but it teleports away as you get closer unless you distract it with apples.

We can see into a bedroom of a house where a wall has fallen away (or exploded?) where a kadabra inspects various objects and toys within it via telekinesis.

Natu have replaced the spearows perching on the garden fences to be cuter, less angry birds.

At night, a Xatu ominously stares at you from whichever angle you look at it from, opening its wings as you get close.

Also at night, a furfrou dozes beside a front door. It will wake with either a pesterball or pokeflute and will start barking.

Espurr sit quietly and happily in gardens overgrown by flowers, minding their own business… unless you hit them with a pesterball, unleashing a spurt of psychic power.

Annoying the espurr makes a meowstic appear over the roof of a house. There’s a male one during the day, and a female one at night.

Through all of the suburban landscape, there is a Mime Jr that will follow you after photographing him once, popping up to ruin the shot if you’ve focused the camera too long. Enjoy your photobombing mini psychic clown!

The path is crossed by a pair of rockruff playing and chasing leaves blown by the breeze.

Their big sibling lycanroc catches up with them, day form during the day, and night form during the night.

Some of these forgotten and damages houses still have perfectly functioning doors, and who better than Klefki to help you open them and see inside? Lure a Klefki close to a door and it will open it for you!

And some of those houses contain appliances like microwaves, washing machines and lawn mowers… perfect hiding spots for a rogue Rotom.

Now the path branches, and we can either head to the town square, that still looks bright and clean, or towards a more damaged area of town and its back alleys.

The town square looks fancy, honestly quiet well to do and upper class. There’s an open town square with a statue of some important human or other, a fountain and fancy cobblestone paths. In the distance, the road takes you past an ominous looking mansion with a massive gate before the end of the level.

Skitty scamper along the street, disappearing between some of the other buildings during the day. Sometimes they will chase their own tail.

At night a Delcatty walks that same path, though at a much more sedate, graceful pace.

A smeargle can be found during the day, painting graffiti on building walls.

At night, shuppets play in empty windows and long-forgotten flower pots.

During the day, a flock of pidove perch on the statue in the center of the town square, definitely not making a mess of it.

An Espeon walks around the rim of the fountain, then sits to watch you approach.

An Alakazam meditates in the library, visible through a crumbled wall. It hovers in mid air, surrounded by an aura and floating books. The aura distorts your photos, unless you distract it with the pokeflute.

Mr Mime is performing in the town square. Random chance for there to be two of them.

A glameow stalks the player from the safe distance of the roof tops.

A stoutland, in all its shaggy glory guards a fancy bed in a kennel beside a house. Coax it up and out with apples to reveal three lilipups that were hiding beneath its fur.

At night, Mewtwo circles the statue in the otherwise abandoned town square. It’s shielded by an aura that takes three pesterballs to break. It ignored you before the aura was broken, then turns on you with angry, glowing eyes. One of the few pokemon capable of coherant speach, the first time you encounter it, it demands “What do you want?” with the voice in your head. Your vehicle continues on its path. On subsequent visits mewtwo instead asks “Back again?” and “Why are you alone?”

Lure another klefki across the road to open the gate to the mansion.

If we go to the damaged back alleys instead, weaving behind the fancy buildings to the hidden areas behind them, we find instead:

Snubbull squabbling over food, which you can feed.

Purrloin raiding trash cans. Toss a pester ball in there to make them pop out.

A granbull gnawing on a fossil bone. Lure a purloin closer to it so that it chases the cat pokemon and abandons the fossil for you to reanimate later.

At night a purugly patrols the scene where granbull had been during the day, all the other pokemon intimidated away.

There is also a ghastly floating around at night, but you only see a haze until your photos are developed in the lab.

Trubbish can also be evicted from trash cans by throwing pesterballs into them.

A Garbodor can also be revealed, but this time you have to throw a pesterball into a large dumpster.

Liepard lurks on the rooftops, stalking the player from a safe distance, until it jumps over the path to the roof on the other side in one location.

Scraggy forage and show off during the day. Lure two close together and they will engage in a display, each trying to show off the size of their ‘pants’.

A scrafty can be enraged enough to punch a secret panel off a wall, revealing a locked door to a secret facility. Good thing there’s another klefki nearby.

And towards the end of the level is a barren field of crumbling debris, no plants, and no pokemon. An ominous, dark cocoon hovers above the ground, in which waits Yveltal, but it can only be activated after Xerneas has been found.

A previous level, the Ocean, is here.