I think its just like forest-spirit said.  Its a combination of the bright graphics and the usual Anime/'toon' style.  While some people just snub any game that has this design (or any design that isn't a certain style they like).  I find it funny myself, because while these people will instantly disreguard something like Tales of Symphonia or Dragon Quest VIII, simply based on their character designs and call them 'toony', they'll jump on World of Warcraft or Mortal Kombat vs DC Universe.

People saying that hardcore gamers are denying themselves good games is ridiculous. We've had XIII, fear effect, jet grind radio, killer 7, persona.... the list goes on and on.

It may seem strange to you, but the way I see it, some games use cel shading in order to make a game look different and cool, whereas other games use it to make a game look more cartoonish in order to purposely appeal to younger audiences. I think some devs may be doing more of the latter, especially (since it's already been brought up) wii developers.

Not in the west. It will only gain small cult followings by anime fanatics. Thats about it.

Level-5 are gods when it comes to doing a really good cel-shading, i'm expecting wonders when their game with Studio Ghibli comes out...

I'm one of those that loves cel-shading, but not for anything, i like variety in my games, some games are good in CGI, some are good in cel-shading, some are even good with low-res sprites (like Disgaea 3), the thing is knowing where is good and where is not, and despite some people's way of thinking, cel-shading looks good on some western games...

My guess is that in America cartoons = for kids and cel shading looks cartoony.

I personally like it, what I can dislike however is the character models or the way the cel shading is used.

i dont think this game is aimed at children,  seeing as it contains alot of violence and some partial nudity scenes.

oh and here is some Cel-shading godness.

House of the Dead III

Metal Gear Ac!d 2

Dragon Quest VIII

Prince Of Persia

No More Heroes

Valkyria Chronicles

I have a friend in his late 20's who is so in love with cel-shaded graphics some times he just wants to go rent 3 random cel-shaded games to see the animations.

I can't believe that people are arguing that cel-shading is just for kids but CGI is for people of all ages. All graphical styles are for all ages. We've got Clover/Platinum making games like Okami, Viewtiful Joe, and MadWorld, all with different gameplay styles, and all cel-shaded. You can do anything with the stuff. The X-Men Legends games were pretty rad too.

American cartoons aren't just for kids. I wish people would stop pretending that stuff like Family Guy, The Simpsons, Futurama, American Dad, and King of the Hill were never made.

I think cel-shaded graphics work very well in Prince of Persia and Valkyria Chronicles, because they match the feeling of the game.

However, a game like Uncharted or Killzone 2 in cel-shading would be hideous.

I was unaware this was the case.... crackdown was cell shaded and damn good,  cant wait for 2.   

hmm if this is the case ive missed the notice that they cant be mature