Its strange how comparatively cartoony the materials are on King Dodongo vs the rest of the art direction. Look at the neck, thats very Skyward Sword in approach. Maybe he is like an amphibian covered in rocks instead of having scales? Would fit the lifecycle better maybe?
While I dont hate the new Link design I do think something was lost in the translation of his facial features especially.
and just for fun its its interesting to compare design decisions I made for a more realistic materials Link to the official one