Super Smash Bros.’ creator Masahiro Sakurai weighs in on his thoughts about manga-like visuals in gaming. Read on to find out what he said and what he recommends developers to do!
Manga-like Faces in Video Games Give More Expressive Visuals
Sakurai Gives His Thoughts In Latest Video
Super Smash Bro’s legendary game designer Masahiro Sakurai has just released another video on his YouTube channel called Masahiro Sakurai on Creating Games, where he talks about the intricacies of game development through his perspective.
On today’s episode titled "Manga-like Visuals [Graphics]," he discussed the interesting ways in which visuals are expressed in Japanese anime and manga, most of which can be used in games as well. Today’s topic largely focused on the "unnatural" expression characters have when their side profile is shown in cutscenes, where the mouth fully appears on the side of the face. "It may be strange if you think about it too much, but it’s a great way of expressing the character," he commented. Sakurai then pointed out some examples in games where this is seen, such as Mega Man Legends, Sonic Forces, and of course from his own game, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. (SSBU)
In SSBU, he made use of the side-mouth approach in the changes to Kirby and Jigglypuffs’ models in game, taking note that the "manga-like" changes creates a more expressive visual for both.
"Just because manga-like visuals lack realism doesn’t mean you should avoid using them—if anything, I recommend them. We may be better off welcoming the fun kinds of expression these methods can bring about," he chimed in, even if he agrees that these might make more work for the engine.
Sakurai concluded the video with some food for thought; "You won’t be able to address these things if you don’t notice them first, so don’t take your givens as givens, and instead look for a suitable—or even exaggerated—way of expressing your visuals."
As Sakurai’s channel continues to post more of his content, the creator himself announced that he has already concluded filming of the final video for the channel. There is no exact date as to when this will happen yet, but for now, viewers will just have to enjoy the last few of what’s to come.
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Masahiro Sakurai on Manga-like Visuals
