What a transformation

Ever wonder how a game likeZelda: Breath of the Wildwould fare with a darker, more realistic style? Thanks to modders and the Wii U emulatorCemu, we don’t have to strain our imaginations.

This curious showcase from YouTube userArkh Longstridedemonstrates just how mood-defining Nintendo’s aesthetic choices were forBreath of the Wild. The footage shows the game running on a PC with the lush “cel-shaded” effect turned off, and the end result is downright transformative. The world shifts from this cheerful, inviting, whimsical place to giving off a glum, almost hopeless vibe.

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That said, I’ll never get tired of seeingBreath of the Wildwith extra bells and whistles and higher-than-normal frame rates. Props to anyone who has the patience to get this PC version up and running.

This second video from Arkh is more in line with what we’re used to from the non-modded version of the game on Wii U and Switch. It uses the same settings as before, but it’s daylight, there’s “a bit of fog” added back, and the Clarity preset was swapped “to a more colorful once since people asked for it.”

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An interesting experiment, to be sure. I’m picturing a potentialMajora’s Masksuccessor in this vein.

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild FX8320 @4.3/GTX 960 @1507 CemU 1.15.3b with Cel-Shading Removal + Defogger[reddit] [Thanks, indigit4l]

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