A set of new screenshots for SEGA’s upcoming NiGHTS: Journey of Dreams has emerged, and they’re looking really rather pretty. Using the first scans of the game (view them here) as a benchmark and you can really see just how much the developer has improved its aesthetic appearance.

Granted, there’s going to be more clarity in proper screenshots than magazine scans, but there’s no mistaking the improved crispness of the character models and environments on show. It’s reassuring to see that at least some third parties are putting effort into discovering what the Wii has under its hood.

NiGHTS: Journey of Dreams is set in the world of Nightopia where two young characters, Helen and Will, live. Struggling with the pressures of adolescence, the two 12-year-olds find their real life experiences overflowing into their dreams. In their slumber they meet NiGHTS, the title’s central character. The magical jester helps the children overcome their problems in the fantasy dreamland, confronting and defeating the various nasties of the land at the same time.

SEGA hopes to offer gamers a feeling of flight not possible in the SEGA Saturn original, by using the Wii Remote to allow players to spin, climb, dive, loop and glide their way through numerous mystical lands. An online two-player mode was recently announced as well, don’t ya know?

Definitely one to keep an eye on.