10 Video Game Locations You Didn't Know Actually Exist

2. Bell Tower (Pokémon Gold & Silver)/ Kinkaku-Ji (Kyoto, Japan)

Anor Londo Il Duomo
Nintendo/By Jaycangel [CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], from Wikimedia Commons

A giant pagoda sits at the centre of Ecruteak City, a sacred, gilded temple atop which legend has it roosts the mythical Ho-Oh. The jewel of Johto is a mélange of several temples in real-life Kyoto: the equally aureate Kinkaku-ji, the supposedly-silver Ginkaku-ji, and the supertall Tō -ji - Japan's largest pagoda.

Both the Bell Tower and Tō-ji once had twins to their west - only for them to burn to the ground. The one big difference is that Kyoto's didn't have a massive fiery bird sitting on top of it. One for the insurance people to sort out, that.

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Editorial Team
Editorial Team

Benjamin was born in 1987, and is still not dead. He variously enjoys classical music, old-school adventure games (they're not dead), and walks on the beach (albeit short - asthma, you know). He's currently trying to compile a comprehensive history of video game music, yet denies accusations that he purposefully targets niche audiences. He's often wrong about these things.