Playing the Teal Mask DLC was a bit of a surreal experience with the Pokémon World Championships just a few weeks ago.
After finally visiting Japan myself the sense of familiarity playing The Teal Mask was undeniable, but that didn’t really hit me until I saw this happen:
Even more immersive was that, about halfway through the main story of the DLC, the player and several characters visit a festival. Again this festival and its overall atmosphere all felt familiar. During my visit to Japan myself and several Pokémon players from Japan managed to catch some of Gozan no Okuribi, a festival where large bonfires are lit on the side of a mountain range, in the shape of kanji characters.
Gozan no Okuribi takes place in Kyoto, another rich source of inspiration for Pokémon. The Pokémon region of Johto takes several inspirations from this part of Japan. The new map to explore is rather short and I managed to chart most of it in short order thanks to my ridable Miraidon from the main story which already had all the movement upgrades.
This increase in difficulty was definitely needed for DLC released now as many fans have likely finished the main game with a group of Pokémon that are highly levelled. Making competitive Pokémon in late 2023, with Teal Mask, is still rather tedious even with all the new quality of life features. Shell Smash on Torterra is anTo loop back around to the World Championships 2023, I highly recommend this video from.