This render of the Etchū-Daimon Station might is so realistic that you’d need to watch it several times to notice the differences. Artist Lorenzo Drago is behind this super realistic render using the new Unreal Engine 5.
Drago, popularly known on the internet as Subjectn on the internet, posted a video showing the demonstration earlier this week. It went viral on Japanese Social media. They say it’s a replica of an actual train station located in Toyama, Japan. Even at first glance, as well as after a second and third look at the third and fourth, it appears like an actual train station.
There have been several impressive demos since the release of Unreal Engine 5, which made use of the famous Matrix cities as its main showpiece. Artists and fans have created Spider-Man, Portal, and Superman, each one of them outstanding in its own way. However, Drago’s train station is likely to be the most difficult to differentiate from the real world, partly because it’s a tiny and well-known place.
Take a look at the small imperfections present in sheet metal and concrete, and rivets on the beams, and the scratches that block the reflections of the wooden walls of the hall. He used using real-time VR tracking that emulates the handheld camera and flashlight to record the video..
This space took roughly an entire month to create, Drago explained to GamesRadar and the time spent gathering references. Drago says he didn’t pick the station for any specific reason. He found it while searching for sources and liked “the ambiance of a rural Japanese railway station”. It’s true: this may appear like straight-up photogrammetry; however, Drago hasn’t been to the train station. Nor did anyone at the station provide him with fresh images.
“Being in the same category as photogrammetry is an excellent complement, but I tried to recreate the reference as close as I could in Substance Painter,” he states. “I believe that I improved my texture and material creation when compared with my earlier projects. It was like an experiment, and I’m glad I could achieve this level of realism.”
富山県にある越中大門駅を海外有志が最新ゲームエンジン「Unreal Engine 5」で再現。実写にしか見えないんだけど・・ pic.twitter.com/QFAekoqKga
— ユルクヤル、外国人から見た世界 (@Yurukuyaru) May 9, 2022
Drago admits it was pleasant to watch the video go viral on Japanese Twitter and other platforms. “Most users on Japanese Social Media were shocked by my choice of platform,” he says.
Unreal Engine 5 is relatively new, yet we’re already seeing photorealistic art similar to this. It’s awe-inspiring to imagine what artists such as Drago will be creating in the next year or two years.
Source: Gamesradar
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