Daily Debate: Could Across The Spider-Verse’s Approach To Art Style and World Design Be Applied To A Future Zelda Game?
Posted on August 06 2023 by Sean Gadus
While The Super Mario Bros. Movie may be the most commercially successful animated film this year, Across The Spider-Verse is my pick for the best animated film of the year. In addition to the incredible voice acting, genre-defying musical score, and heartfelt storytelling, the film’s approach to animation and world design are a huge part of what makes the film so memorable. Each of the dimensions or worlds in Across The Spider-Verse have their own distinct color palettes, real life influences, and world designs. For example, Earth-65 (Gwen Stacy’s world) uses vivid watercolors, and the colors of the backgrounds often change depending on the mood of the scene. The futuristic world of Earth-928 (home to Miguel O’Hara) is inspired by the science fiction art of Syd Mead, John Berkey, John Harris, and John Bell. For Earth-1610 (Miles’ world), the animators use techniques that evoke classic comics. If you are interested in the design concepts for all of the different worlds, you can check out this article for a full breakdown.
The use of different visual styles and different world designs is one of the elements that drew me to Across The Spider-Verse. Though it is extremely time-consuming and challenging to create a variety of visual identities and world designs, the use of different color palettes, art styles, and world designs made every location in the film feel distinct and exciting.
With this in mind, could Across The Spider-Verse‘s approach to world design and art style (using different visual designs and drawing from different inspirations for each world) be applied to a future Zelda game?
Overall, the idea of using different visual styles and color palettes for different worlds is something that would be incredibly exciting to see in a future Zelda game. The Zelda series has long dabbled with the concept of dual worlds (Light and Dark World, Past and Present, Hyrule and Twilight), and it would be exciting to see Nintendo apply this concept to multiple worlds within the same game. I do not think Nintendo should create a multiverse story with multiple Links, but it would be interesting to see a Zelda game where the player navigates a series of worlds that each look visually distinct or function differently. Perhaps instead of a Zelda game with one massive map like Breath of the Wild, a new Zelda game could have Link explore three or four medium-sized worlds that the player can move between. Imagine a Zelda game where one world has bright colors, another world that is sepia-toned, and a third world that is completely black and white.
What do you think? Could Across The Spider-Verse‘s approach to world design be applied to the Zelda series? If so, what type of visual designs, animation style, or color palettes would you like to see together in a Zelda game? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
Sean Gadus is a Senior Editor at Zelda Dungeon. His first Zelda game was Ocarina of Time, and he loves all of the 3D Zelda games from 1998-2011. The final battle of Tears of the Kingdom is one of his favorite final battles in the entire series. He wants to help build a kinder, more compassionate world. You can check out his other written work at The-Artifice.com.
