“Bethesda can’t do this even if it tries”: the artist amazed fans of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim with a demonstration of Riften on Unreal Engine 5

Australian artist Leo Torres continues to tease fans eager for The Elder Scrolls VI with his recreations of iconic locations from The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim in Unreal Engine 5.

Image source: Steam (smr1957)

In a new video, Torres presented his vision of the capital of the ancient possession of the Rift – the city of Riften in the southeast of the province of Skyrim, located in the picturesque Autumn Forest and known as the headquarters of the Thieves Guild.

In the three-minute video, the artist showed Riften on a more realistic scale: in addition to the cinematic camera flyover over the location, the video includes a “walk” through the transformed city with a first-person view.

According to Torres, Riften was his favorite city in the original Skyrim, and considers the newest demo with the Unreal Engine 5 version of the city to be his best work to date.

Rendering took place in Unreal Engine 5.4 on an RTX 3090. The artist used his own (made in Blender) and third-party models, Lumen (global illumination and reflections) and Nanite (models and vegetation) technologies.

The audience was delighted with Torress’s new work. Fans in the comments don’t expect a similar level of graphics in The Elder Scrolls VI: “Bethesda can’t do it even if it tries,” says Ishwolv.

In the past, Torres has recreated locations in UE5 such as Dawnstar, Whiterun, Solitude, Winterhold, Blackreach, Markarth, Falkreath and Morthal. It was previously reported that the artist is working on the Imperial City (Cyrodiil).