Nintendo graphics look fantastic — even on underpowered hardware, they're great. Nintendo knows how to make characters and worlds with a strong visual flair. But what about hyper realistic graphics?
The BBC put the question of why Nintendo's games have a stylized look and not photo realistic graphics to Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto. His response:
Our company makes games of several different styles but we always try to be different, whether it's video game or animations there are always trends. For example, in the video games industry, it seems that the majority of companies are heading in the same direction, taking advantage of identical technologies. They are simply trying to be better than their rivals. But my idea is pretty different. We try to be unique and different and try not to depend on the techniques of others. We try to be as uniquely creative as possible, and that's got to have played a part in making our games look different.