Mario and Luigi: Brothership almost had a different art style inspired by Acquire and Square Enix's HD-2D games like Octopath ...

“There was a point where I thought an HD-2D approach like OCTOPATH TRAVELER could be a possibility ... and 3DS, where the in-game sprites were similar to the character designs from the box art, but ...

following the release of Octopath Traveler. The new JRPG franchise features a unique art style, dubbed "HD-2D," that combines two-dimensional sprites with gorgeous 3D backgrounds and an HD polish.

with the bulk of the praise going to the beautifully redrawn pixel art that Square Enix popularized with Octopath Traveler and which is now the studio's go-to style when making sprite-based games.