When Nintendo revealed The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword at E3 back in June, you would have been forgiven for thinking at first glance the graphical style was simply a compromise between Wind Waker’s cel-shading and Twilight Princess’s more realistic design. But it turns out the semi-cel-shading style was more inspired by Shigeru Miyamoto’s love for impressionist art, and it also turns out it actually serves a gameplay purpose.
“One of the reasons we’ve chosen the art style we have with Skyward Sword is that it is a better vehicle to showcase the exaggerated characteristics of some of the characters,” explained producer Eiji Aonuma to Official Nintendo Magazine (via Nintendo Everything). “Not only of the enemy characters, but as a representation of the sword spirit itself.”
Skyward Sword introduces a new style of combat in Zelda, where players have to pay attention to the way enemies hold their weapons in order to find openings for attacks. Aonuma says the art style was chosen to make that easier to do in the heat of battle.
