Best Graphics

Switch

Nintendo World Report's 2019 Game Awards

by Zachary Miller, Xander Morningstar, and Mitchell Parton - January 5, 2020, 7:59 am EST

Switch may not be the most powerful device, but it can still display some gorgeous graphics.

Winner: Luigi's Mansion 3

The real beauty of Luigi's Mansion 3 isn't the graphical fidelity, which is excellent, but the wonderful animation and characterization of Luigi, Polterpup, and all the ghosts inhabiting The Last Resort hotel. It's hard to beat the dance floor area, where breakdancing ghosts get their groove on to the sick beats of the D.J. Luigi's supposed to be fighting the ghosts for an elevator button, but even he can't help but snap his fingers to the beat. It's little things like this that puts Next Level Games in a league of their own when it comes to graphics and art design.

What's in a graphic? The animation right? Luigi and co. have never looked so expressive. The stitches in fabric, the shines on slimy, opaque ghost ooze, the jiggling Gooigi, this game is a visual treat. I find the work put into this game from Next Level Games is inspiring to those seeking to master animation.

~ Zachary Miller, Xander Morningstar

Runner Up: The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening

The ultra-cute, mesmerizing toy style not only looks good, but it's a masterful way to revitalize a classic game. The new look compliments the gameplay and story without feeling at all out of place.

~ Mitchell Parton

Runner Up: Yoshi's Crafted World

Good Feel is really good at making games look like they were made from actual crafted materials, and I have to say that Yoshi's Crafted World is no exception. Crafted World's adorable aesthetic looks incredible. It's impressive how the graphics were able to sell just how realistic everything in the game is.

~ Xander Morningstar

Best Music Best Art

Images

Talkback

OedoJanuary 05, 2020

I started playing through Genealogy of the Holy War last year (after finally catching up with most of the Fire Emblem games released in North America; the only ones I haven't finished now are Shadow Dragon and two routes of Three Houses, the latter of which I'm planning to start soon). The game really is super intriguing from a story and character standpoint, but yeah, it needs a full on remake from a gameplay perspective. There are a lot of interesting ideas with the large maps and mission structure, and how the romance and timeskip is implemented, but the game is hard to play in a lot of respects. I would love to see it remade, and with Koei Tecmo apparently taking a larger role on Three Houses than we initially thought, it makes a certain amount of sense that a remake is something other people at Intelligent Systems would have been working in the meanwhile.

I wouldn't hold my breathe for Thracia 776 as DLC though. I know people have speculated on that, or even both games being remade into a single package, but I don't think either scenario is feasible when you consider Intelligent Systems turned Gaiden into such a fleshed out, robust game with Shadows of Valentia due to the care and attention they approached the remake with. I think Thracia 776 would have to be its own remake.

Overall, it was interesting to read through this feature as always!