Zelda BOTW
Image: Nintendo

Zelda: Breath of the Wild may not be running on cutting-edge hardware – even by 2017 standards – but it's still one phenomenally good-looking video game, and proves that aesthetic brilliance doesn't always have to go hand-in-hand with graphical muscle.

The game's mix of sprawling 3D environments and cel-shaded characters is incredibly effective, but Reddit user MicroFlamer decided to check out what it would look like if Nintendo had opted for the more traditional approach and not included cel-shading. The results are shiny and plastic-like, as you might expect, and call to mind the toy-like visuals seen in the Zelda: Link's Awakening remake.

If nothing else, this little experiment shows how a seemingly small visual choice can make a massive difference to the overall look of a game; the original cel-shaded graphics have a genuinely beautiful quality to them and we're amazed at how much of a negative impact is made by removing the feature.

What do you make of these 'Unreal Engine'-style visuals? Perhaps you prefer this look? Let us know with a comment.

[source reddit.com, via screenrant.com]