Semi-Realism
Quick Summary
Semi-Realism is a blended style where environmental scenery and lighting mechanics are made highly realistic (cinema-like), but character face and body designs are stylized to carry an unrealistically perfect beauty standard (doll-like or Anime-like).
Semi-Realism: The environment glitters with complex realistic lighting, but the central character possesses stylistically idealized body proportions and flawlessly smooth skin.
What is Semi-Realism?
This “half-and-half” style was born to avoid the “Uncanny Valley” ghost (the phenomenon where people feel unnerved when looking at a 3D character that is too similar to a real human but with stiff expressions). In Semi-Realism, puddles, lumps of coal, or rays of sunlight are rendered exactly as real — but characters always possess flawlessly smooth skin and idealized body proportions far exceeding real human biological standards.
This style is the irreplaceable trump card for Role-Playing Games (RPG) originating from Asia — especially Korea and Japan. We can easily encounter beautifully exquisite girls/guys carrying oversized swords larger than themselves soaring across gloomy realistic settings in Final Fantasy VII Remake, Stellar Blade, or Black Desert Online. This format helps games avoid being too rigidly constrained by real physics laws — allowing creative freedom for fantasy armor designs and character archetypes.