Anyone close to me knows this hasn't been a good year for me. Amongst many things, catching Covid over Christmas and suffering from long Covid since then has been a rather miserable experience.
I have many days where my fatigue is atrocious, my body hurts, and my memory is truly terrible.
The first upcoming preview of our region I remember seeing when I joined the PokéForce staff team was the hot spring between Violet City and Cherrygrove. I loved it immediately. This likely wasn't the first thing I actually saw, but with my memory being the way it is... this is what feels like the first.
Sure, it's not a ridiculously complex area, but the simple details look wonderful, and it truly reminds me of rural Japan and places like Beppu which have lots of hot springs, perfect for Johto.
I liked the accidental story in this screenshot I took - Me, observing the area and taking in the information of the place I adore; a lone Feraligatr, somehow standing without his trainer due to early demo bugs; and my own Toto, looking curiously at his future evolution - all while the day's lighting starts to fade.