Hilda isn't the only character in FE4 to look better in the official artwork, the same applies to characters like Burian (lined face with a huge nose ingame), Ishtor (receded hairline with squinty eyes ingame), and Andre (prominent cheekbones, dull hair color and narrowed eyes), all of these features are absent or downplayed in the artwork.
I have two theories for this.
The attractive designs of the NPCs were the original. I've noticed the Ishtor concept artwork (labeled Thunder mage on Serenesforest) is attractive like the TCG artwork. If this is true, than the pixel artist uglied up their designs so the players wouldn't mind striking them down. Julius managed to escape the strike of the ugly stick by virtue of his prominence.
Theory 2 is the artists of the TCG didn't like drawing ugly characters combined with that people are supposed to want to own cards of these characters, mean the villains are given beauty treatments before having their mugs graced on valuable cards.
Also I remembered, Elliot, Lachesis's creeper admirer in FE4 for reference, whom looks like a big nosed, narrow faced Japanese delinquent, actually is good looking n the Nuts Fujimori manga, as in like he looks like a character you could recruit.
Correct me if I'm wrong but-
I think there used to be official art (Lex and his axe!) for the characters around the game's release - and the TCG came later (but before Treasure)?
Granted Jugdral has some inconsistencies between the in game pixel sprites and the artworks of said characters (re : Saias's eye colour controversy).
As for the TCG, I'd say Theory 2, if you are supposed to use those people, they shouldn't be randoms but people you can distinguish bar "blonde dude 1 and blonde dude 36" - also bcs the sprites used the palet swap technique way too much lol
Then the mangas are something different altogether lol.
