Aonuma discusses art direction for Zelda Skyward Sword

Some insight behind the decision to forgo realistic graphics

Courtesy of the Official Nintendo Magazine, we’ve gained some insight behind The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword’s unique graphic style after title director, Eiji Aonuma commented on the choice to leave the realistic graphics of the series predecessor, Twilight Princess behind.

The key point Aonuma focused on was the need for the exaggerated characteristics. “We thought that because we want to highlight the swordfighting combat, we have to exaggerate the features”, Aonuma explained. The title director also stated that this was important to show how the enemies were carrying their weapons. This could be a hint that enemies carry weapons in very exaggerated or unorthodox ways, in order to allow the player to work out their weaknesses, something that is also hinted at in the E3 trailer fr the game.

Aonuma concluded, “We matched the artwork so that we can highlight the over-exaggeration in the gameplay.” It is also interesting to remember that Nintendo stated that the graphics shown in the E3 trailer were not a representation of the final product, as work continues on this area of the game.

What do you think of the art direction being taken in Skyward Sword? Head over to the forums and join in the discussion.

Source: Official Nintendo Magazine