cel rendering

A technique found in 3D media that mimics the appearance of 2D illustrations.

A well-known example is The Legend of Zelda's Breath of the Wild.

In 3D media, cel rendering is typically employed by use of minimalist textures and shaders. This may include hard-edged shadows and highlights, sometimes to a degree that causes visual color banding, and other times, there may be an intentional omission of shadows altogether (e.g. Untitled Goose Game). There may also be use of a prominent outline (Okami), and on the flipside, there may be an omission of an outline altogether.

For the 2D cel shading technique, see anime coloring instead.

Media examples

Anime

• Ajin
• BanG Dream!
• Trigun Stampede

Videogames

• Jet Set Radio
• NEO: The World Ends With You
• Ni no Kuni
• The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker

See also

• Low poly