Unreal Engine 5: this video is breathtakingly realistic

For the past few weeks, developers around the world have officially had access to the Unreal Engine 5 graphics engine, the latest creation from Epic Games. Embedded with state-of-the-art lighting and contrast technologies, Unreal Engine 5 has already been put to the test several times, and we have been amazed every step of the way. Today, a new video emerges, which further supports the performance of the engine and its high potential in terms of photorealism.

This video was created by artist Lorenzo Drago who made a 3D reproduction of Etchū-Daimon station in Japan. We see the quay at night and day, which allows us to see the contrasts applicable in each situation. The result is simply breathtaking as the shadow and light effects are so realistic. If this is not exactly what awaits us in our next video games, it is still very promising.

Obviously, the in-game performances will never be able to match the work produced for a video of less than 3 minutes, specially created to present the engine. But it gives us a glimpse of what can be done in terms of cinematics for example. About his video, the artist says:

“For this project, I wanted to get as close as possible to photorealism. I used camera matching to achieve precise proportions and made careful use of references. I adjusted the measurements afterwards to promote modularity. Apart from detail textures and alphas created from photographs, I created all textures from scratch in Painter and made custom materials in Unreal to use with vertex painting or masks for break the repetition.”

A meticulous process that has obviously paid off. It took him a whole month to make this short video and at the end of the viewing, we really have the impression of being immersed in the heart of a horror film style found footage.