S.T.A.L.K.E.R.'s Zombie Factory Yantar Recreated in Unreal Engine 5

As the world eagerly awaits the release of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2, Level Designer and 3D Environment Artist Jeks Demi continues to reimagine the iconic locations from the OG 2007 Shadow of Chernobyl with highly realistic visuals that match those seen in the upcoming sequel's trailers.

With his latest project, the creator reproduced arguably the creepiest locale from the game, the iconic zombie factory Amber (Yantar), in 3D, complete with the familiar atmosphere of hopelessness and misery, as well as the abundance of dead vegetation inspired by Jeks' personal visit to the Zone of Alienation in 2019. According to the artist, the scene was set up using SketchUp and Unreal Engine 5, including the latter's Lumen tool.

Previously, Jeks also offered a current-generation take on S.T.A.L.K.E.R.'s Agroprom factory, enhancing the familiar location with better visuals and revamped lighting:

And here are some of the artist's previous post-apocalyptic artworks, you can check out more by visiting Jeks' ArtStation page:

For those unfamiliar, Lumen is Unreal Engine 5's fully dynamic global illumination and reflections system, specifically crafted for next-gen consoles. It serves as the default system for managing global illumination and reflections.

Lumen excels at rendering diffuse interreflection with infinite bounces and indirect specular reflections in large, detailed environments, spanning scales from millimeters to kilometers. Attached below are some insightful guides that will show you how Lumen can push lighting in your 3D environments to a whole new level: