Part 14: Desert Resort

Main Walkthrough

Whether you ran into Desert Resort and checked out the Pokémon (a good idea) or ignored it completely (not the best idea), you now have only one destination: Nimbasa City. Head north along Route 4 to find it...

Join Avenue

... orrrr maybe not yet. Interposed between Route 4 and Nimbasa City is the all-new Join Avenue, a location that grows and expands based on your interactions with other players via C-Link. The more you connect with other players, the more NPC merchants will appear on Join Avenue and offer their services, and they will level up and expand their offerings as you interact with yet more players. NPCs will open the following stores on Join Avenue:
  • A Raffle that offers random prizes
  • A Beauty Salon where you can increase the Happiness of your Pokémon
  • A Dojo where you can train up the EVs of your Pokémon
  • A Florist that sells Berries
  • A Market that sells a wide variety of normal items, some of which can't be purchased elsewhere in the game
  • A Nursery that makes it easier to hatch eggs
  • An Antique Shop where you can purchase antiques that have a chance of containing rare items
  • A Café where you can improve the stats and levels of your Pokémon
Because Join Avenue is based on a multiplayer service that largely no longer exists, save for local interactions, we won't deve into Join Avenue in any great detail. 

North of Join Avenue you'll find Nimbasa City, home of the trendy and eclectic. Your first stop should be Gear Station, a little ways northwest of the entrance, where you'll find the other gender of your main character squaring off against the Subway Bosses. You can join him or her in a battle against them, and you might as well, as they're rather easy - and offer a lot of money when defeated.


Subway Boss Ingo and Subway Boss Emmet
  • Boldore, level 26
  • Gurdurr, level 26
Reward: 5,200 P

Defeat the Subway Bosses and they'll congratulate you, then invite you to come fight them on the Battle Subway. The Battle Subway is similar to the Battle Towers and Battle Frontiers of previous Pokémon games: You fight randomized trainers with level restrictions, you earn Battle Points, you buy items. Before he or she leaves, your counterpart will give you a VS. Recorder for recording your battles in the Subway or with friends.

Go west of the Battle Subway. You'll see a Pokémon Center where you can rest up and get Red Shards from an old man. From here we will explore Nimbasa City, moving clockwise around the city.


Nimbasa City
  • Next to the Pokémon Center is a building called the Battle Institute. which you can't enter until you've beaten the game. Come back later... much, much later. Check the alley between these two buildings for a Thunderstone. 
  • On the second floor of the left building to the north of the Pokémon Center is an old woman who will give you a Soothe Bell if your lead Pokémon likes you. In the right building a man on the second floor will give you a Sun Stone.
  • In the northwest of Nimbasa City are the Big Stadium and Small Court, where trainers congregate to place sports... and to duke it out with other trainers. The trainers you can fight change each day, depending on what sport's being played, and will give you items when defeated. They're great places to level now, and once you beat Black 2 or White 2 the trainers in Big Stadium and Small Court receive a significant level boost, making them fantastic spots to train for your rematch against the Elite Four. 
  • Next to Small Court is the exit to Route 5. You can go here now to battle a handful of trainers, collect some new Pokémon, and grab a few items. This is currently a dead end, so we'll explore Route 5 in a future article.
  • In the north of Nimbasa City is the Musical Theater. Upon entering you'll receive a Prop Case, which you can use to participate in Pokémon Musicals. These are the Pokémon Black 2 and White 2 equivalent of Contests from previous games. They're fun, but you won't get a whole lot from participating in them besides props for making your Pokémon look festive. Speak to the woman on the right side of the room, beside the vending machines, for TM 49 Echoed Voice.
  • In the northeast of Nimbasa City you'll find the exit to Route 16. It's a good training spot for your Pokémon that we'll visit shortly. Speak to the baseball player in the guard shack before reaching the route for a Macho Brace.
  • On the east side of the city is Nimbasa's amusement park. As soon as you enter the park, check to the south of the entrance. You'll find a Dropped Item on the ground. This Xtransciever belongs to a mystery person - either Curtis or Yancy, depending on your character's gender - who wants it back... eventually. They're kind of busy at the moment. They will, however, send calls to you whenever you reach certain destinations, and when you've contacted them enough times they'll offer to trade rare Pokémon you can't find elsewhere in the game. Finding all the spots where they'll call you is an article in itself.
  • Walk east until you see a trash can near a door. Inside is a Revive. To the far east, beside a giant Audino statue, you'll find a Parlyz Heal. Backtrack a short ways to the Ferris wheel in the center of the park. Here you'll find a trainer each day who will fight with you, and, afterward, take a ride on the Ferris wheel with you. The trainers are random, and they vary between genders.
  • The former Pokémon Gym of Nimbasa City is east of the entrance to the amusement park. We'll explore this spot in the next article, as it's still part of the city's gym challenge. Check the trash can out front of this building for a Revive.
  • On the east side of the amusement park is a Ferris wheel. Out front is a random trainer that will change each day. You can fight them, and if you win the two of you will share a ride on the Ferris wheel.
  • Trek to the far east side of the amusement part and you'll find a large Audino statue. Sitting on the right side of it is a Parlyz Heal.
After you're done looking around, check out the building in the far east of the amusement park. Clyde is standing out front, and he apologizes, because this is the Nimbasa Gym - and the gym leader is off somewhere. Don't these people ever stay in one place anymore? He advises checking out the nearby roller coaster, leaving you with little choice but to make the extra trip to track down the elusive gym leader.