When
Pokémon Let's Go, Pikachu! and
Pokémon Let's Go, Eevee! were revealed for the Nintendo Switch, fans were quick to notice that the game's art style was looking somewhat different than previous iterations released on the Nintendo 3DS.
This change in art direction may have been done in order to adjust the game's new art style to the HD graphics the Nintendo Switch is apable of. After all,
Pokémon Let's Go, Pikachu/Eevee! is the first Pokémon title to ever be developed for an HD console.
It turns out that the art style in
Pokémon Let's Go, Pikachu! and
Pokémon Let's Go, Eevee!, or rather the more childish proportions human characters in these titles have, was changed in order to make the graphics more parent-friendly.
In a recent interview,
Pokémon Let's Go, Pikachu/Eevee! director Junichi Masuda revealed that the development team took into consideration mothers and fathers when designing the new characters, so that parents didn't feel mistrustful of their games.
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At the root of the visual direction was the idea we had of people playing these games at home in their living room. Like if an eight- or nine-year-old kid is playing games in their living room and their mom glances out from the kitchen while cooking dinner and catches sight of the TV screen. Then if she sees something weird on it, she shouts, ‘Stop that! What d’you think you’re doing, playing a game like that?!’I wanted to look at it from the perspective of those moms and dads. I took care in every detail, aware that I didn’t want to make it a game that would cause parents to feel mistrustful of our games".
Another thing that the development team wanted was for parents to join in on the fun when their children were playing Pokémon Let's Go, Pikachu/Eevee!, since one of the main selling points in this new Pokémon title is the multiplayer aspect of it.
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And we kept in mind that we wanted them to be games that would let parents jump in and help out with Support Play whenever their kids might beg, ‘Help me out!’ Same for friends being able to jump in and help, too. We wanted people to come together thanks to these games, with everyone having fun in the living room together. That’s why we didn’t want it to look scary. We’ve built it up as a fantasy world. We set up the proportions of the player character to look a bit childish, too".
Pokémon Let's Go, Pikachu! and
Pokémon Let's Go Eevee!'s new art style definitely fits the series, but it is also very interesting to know why the director wanted them to look more "childish", as it wasn't just a new direction for the sake of change; goes to show how much thought goes into these games, especially when trying to bring in new demographics.
Return to the Kanto region and experience a classic Pokémon journey in a whole new way with Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu! and Pokémon: Let's Go, Eevee! on Nintendo Switch!
Pokémon Let's Go, Pikachu! and Pokémon Let's Go, Eevee! are currently available exclusively for the Nintendo Switch.