UNRECORD has generated intense debate due to its impressive realistic appearance and has raised a series of questions from the community. On one hand, there are those who doubt the project's authenticity, which has caused the developer to offer a behind-the-scenes look to demonstrate its authenticity. The other question that has arisen is how the game manages to look so realistic. In this article, we will focus on answering this question.
We learned about the game when it still had no name: less than a year ago, when a video went viral on social media. It showed action sequences filmed with a camera mounted on the body. At that time, we only found out that a developer was working and playing around with a novel idea.
A few days ago, the official name was revealed: UNRECORD. Immediately, the community started talking about it, highlighting its impressive visual level. Only time will tell if the game will meet expectations or not, but what is certain is that its development has generated great interest and enthusiasm.
I'm working on a body cam style game#unrealengine #gamedev #indiedev pic.twitter.com/AK5kXeAyP2
— Alexandre Spindler (@esankiy) October 12, 2022
But first... What is UNRECORD?
UNRECORD is a first-person tactical shooter game, with an intense and immersive plot that follows the perspective of a police officer's body camera. According to official presentation documents, players will have to use tactical and detective skills to solve complex criminal cases while facing ethical dilemmas and making decisions that will affect their experience in the game.
The game features an original aiming system that allows unrestricted hand movements and a dialogue system that will impact the player's experience, even during combat. Players can expect a story-driven game, with twists and surprises in the plot, presented artistically by combining video perspective and body camera to create an immersive experience.
Developed independently by DRAMA, UNRECORD uses Unreal Engine 5 and is in pre-production stage to debut on PC, Xbox, and PlayStation 5, although the release date remains a mystery. You can add it to your wishlist from now on.
Why does it look so realistic?
UNRECORD looks so realistic because the developer has put a lot of emphasis on artistic choices, particularly in two major areas: shadow work and animation. The game presents a perspective that emulates a first-person recording of real life, using a GoPro-style camera mounted on a police officer's vest. This, along with erratic animations that mimic human movements, creates an unprecedented level of immersion in video games.
In terms of graphics, texture sharpness and object fidelity are important but not the main factors behind photographic realism. Lack of atmosphere lighting and shadows are essential in creating a realistic sensation. The game primarily presents scenes in cloudy environments, limiting the appearance of direct shadows. However, it uses real-time shading indoors, showcasing the capabilities of modern game engines like Unreal Engine 5.
Color contrast and management are also fundamental in creating a sense of realism. Additionally, cinematic color grading techniques increase contrast, such as using pure white skies and white light from flashlights illuminating surfaces. This technique of managing shadows and highlights contributes greatly to the feeling of emulating a realistic recording because it imitates the limited light sensor properties of a body-mounted camera.
Finally, the post-processing effects applied to the image are essential in obscuring visual quality and creating a sense of realism. These include barrel distortion typical of wide-angle lenses, chromatic aberration, grain and origin failures, and limited depth of field. These effects result in blurry backgrounds and elements, which increase the sense of immersion in the game. That is, all of the above comes together to hide the tiniest details that could break the illusion of realism.
UNRECORD is a great example of the innovation that only independent developer communities can offer. If the game becomes a success, we may see large studios copying this style in the future, if they are not already doing so.
What do you think of UNRECORD? Do you also see it as a big leap in graphical fidelity? I'm listening to you in the comments and keep informed at LEVEL UP.
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