Skyrim's Dawnstar gets gorgeous Unreal Engine 5 makeover

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is one of those games where, chances are, you’ll end up giving it a whirl at one point or another. In fact, Bethesda are confident that we’ll be playing Skyrim well into the next decade which is impressive when you consider that the game was released over 11 years ago. If you’re yet to try Skyrim out and you’re a PlayStation Plus subscriber, today is your lucky day as the game is now available to download from the extra tier catalogue.

There’s no denying that Skyrim is an incredible game, but fans should also be credited for their contribution to its enduring popularity. Fan-created projects and mods have been key in maintaining Skyrim’s longevity. One recent mod added six new islands and is essentially the size of a full DLC, while another modder added Middle-earth: Shadow Of Mordor’s Nemesis System to the game. Today though, I bring you an incredible Unreal Engine 5 makeover of Dawnstar.

Take a look at some of our favourite Skyrim wins and fails below.

As spotted by Gfinity Esports, Reddit user liontowers3d has been using Unreal Engine 5 to overhaul the city of Dawnstar - and the results are incredible. Liontowers3d shared a video of the project and believe me when I say that you could easily mistake this for real-life footage. Photorealism is reaching scary heights. I’ll let the clip speak for itself. Take a look below.

The Northern Lights? Chef’s kiss. It’ll come as a surprise to no one that fellow Skyrim fans were hugely impressed, flocking to the post to share their thoughts. DJ4CG wrote, “When graphics start to look better than real life, what the f**k? This is amazing and 2010 me would be in complete disbelief. This is stunning,” while heydanitsdan added, “This is gorgeous! 90% of why I want to eventually switch to PC is so I can play Skyrim with graphics like this.”

Liontowers3d mentioned that the project took several weeks to complete but they didn’t provide any further info on whether they plan to expand and take on other Skyrim cities. Still, it’s a promising look at what a potential Elder Scrolls VI could look like.