Pokémon Sword and Shield were milestone titles in the Pokémon franchise, being the first mainline entries released on a Nintendo home console instead of handhelds. Sword and Shield would become the second best-selling Pokémon titles, trailing behind series progenitors Red and Blue. Unfortunately, despite stellar sales and the transition to the more powerful Switch, fans noticed a few notable downgrades in graphical quality, namely with the overworld's trees. For a time after Sword and Shield's release, Pokémon fans compared the rendering of the trees as akin to those in Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, which had released over 20 years ago. Fans also voiced complaints about Pokémon Sword and Shield’s missing National Dex, recycled animations, and lack of substantial post-game.

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As reported by Nintendo Life, Masahiro Sakurai had some interesting comments in a recent YouTube video on his Masahiro Sakurai on Creating Games channel. In the video entitled, Draw the Light, Not the Asset, Sakurai gave some advice on properly drawing trees, with examples of how to apply light for added realism. “To sum it all up: if someone says to make a tree, don't just make a tree and be done with it,” Sakurai instructs. “Art duties might be divided across several team , but one way or another, avoid just drawing the asset and calling it finished. The final product, more than anything, should express the light your asset reflects in the environment.” Even though this seems harmless, there has been speculation that this could also be a subtle jab at Game Freak for Pokémon Sword and Shield's drab trees. While Sakurai had a reputation with Smash Bros. fans for being a bit direct, it’s important to note that this is speculation and that the video itself didn't contain any explicit criticisms of Pokémon Sword and Shield.

Sakurai's Helpful Advice May Mask Subtle Jab at Game Freak

Considering the tree graphics in Pokémon Sword and Shield lacked dynamic lighting, it’s easy to see how some would view Sakurai’s words as a dig toward Game Freak. Whether his words were aimed at Game Freak or not, Sakurai should be pleased to know that the environments in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet are dynamically lit and shaded. Overall, the overworld map seems to have received quite an upgrade. Of course, this improvement may have more to do with Scarlet and Violet being a seamless open-world game than with any specific criticism, but given some players enjoy losing themselves in the visual sights of open-world titles, it's probably best the upgrade happened sooner than later.

Regardless of any perceived double-meaning to Sakurai's comments, his advice on proper lighting is useful to anyone in the creative arts. Since the end of DLC for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Sakurai has made several YouTube videos with helpful tips for anyone interested in game development. Though Sakurai's video has arrived years after Pokémon Sword and Shield's release, the fact that people are still talking about the game's infamous trees shows that Scarlet and Violet must avoid the same graphical pitfalls.

Sources: Ninetndo Life, Masahiro Sakurai on Creating Games/YouTube