It’s strange to think how the elegance of The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker’s bold, thick strokes, endearingly stumpy protagonist, and lusciously saturated palette ever caused so much controversy back in 2003, but even a decade later, the game’s legacy remains defined by its visuals.
In hindsight, The Wind Waker’s distinctive, cel-shaded visuals have retained their allure, even as other, more recent, Zelda games have started to lose lustre. In bringing the game to the Wii U, Nintendo has updated it to run in 1080p widescreen, but has also reworked the lighting and shadows. The Wind Waker HD is no mere upscaling, then, and Nintendo further alters the look of the game by adding thick, foggy layers of bloom and a slightly adjusted colour palette. While the choppy expanses of ocean look untouched, for instance, the sky loses some of its shine and the clouds are blurred, creating a more realistic look.
Read More