Skyrim fan's Unreal Engine 5 remake turns Whiterun into a city worth fighting for

Leo Torres via YouTube
(Image credit: Leo Torres via YouTube)

One talented Skyrim fan has recreated the iconic Whiterun village in Unreal Engine 5 from scratch.

The dedicated Skyrim fan posted their creation to the game's subreddit yesterday on April 19, and it's already been met with a showering of praise from other players. The two-minute video takes viewers on a breathtaking tour of Whiterun as you've never seen it before, even though you've probably visited it more times than you can count in Bethesda's actual game.

I made Whiterun in Unreal Engine 5 – going for a more realistic vibe and (somewhat) lore-accurate scale... from r/skyrim

Beautiful sweeping shots take us over Whiterun from the air before the camera ducks down to give a street-level view of the whole village. The entire creation is actually huge when you put it all in perspective, even stretching off into the distance in some angles, as the creator wanted to go for a "lore-accurate scale."

"Now I want to explore it in-game," wrote one Redditor in the comments section, with another adding, "Same. Its stunning. I would buy Skyrim in Unreal Engine 5," as if that wouldn't be the fifth time they'd be buying Skyrim. 

The mod's creator says it took them "about a month to put together" between their day job and other personal projects. Even if you're going off an area that's already been established in another game, that's still some impressively quick work in a new-gen game engine.

Perhaps one day, about a hundred years from now, we'll get to play an Elder Scrolls game in similarly powerful game engine. Lord knows The Elder Scrolls 6 isn't releasing for at least another few years. 

Check out our guide to the best Skyrim mods if you're wanting to spice up your time in the modern classic RPG.

Hirun Cryer

Hirun Cryer is a freelance reporter and writer with Gamesradar+ based out of U.K. After earning a degree in American History specializing in journalism, cinema, literature, and history, he stepped into the games writing world, with a focus on shooters, indie games, and RPGs, and has since been the recipient of the MCV 30 Under 30 award for 2021. In his spare time he freelances with other outlets around the industry, practices Japanese, and enjoys contemporary manga and anime.