WOW! I remember when they first showed shots of this game I thought they looked pretty poor. Good to see that they've been hard at work.
I agree with couchmonkey. Why didn't we get this years ago? This, RE4, and the new Zelda could have changed the Cube's placement in the console wars if they were released towards the beginning of the console's life. It's like Nintendo released all their experimental titles that required an open mind to like (Luigi's Mansion as the flagship title, Super Mario Sunshine, cel-shaded Zelda) early on and now, when the Cube's last place position is set in stone, all the cool mature games are being released. You're supposed to release the mainstream friendly titles FIRST and the niche wacko titles later.
IS is Nintendo's ultimate developer. They never seen to release a bad game and unlike EAD they're cool. They make Metroid, Advance Wars, and Fire Emblem. All of those have Nintendo quality gameplay and non-realistic visuals but have a style, that although family friendly, doesn't come across as childish. Even Paper Mario looks more surreal and arty while EAD's Mario looks like he walked off the set of Sesame Street. IS should be Nintendo's main focus instead of EAD. IS has found that balance where they can make great games that are also cool while not compromising creativity or artistic design.