Ella : a study in realism for Windows

Free hyperrealistic sim

Ella : a study in realism is a free-to-play simulation from indie developer Andres Hernandez. This casual game is an exercise in pushing the limits of free game development engines. Using the free and open-source Godot Engine, the game manages to present a near-lifelike experience. 

Realistic lighting, cinematic camera views, and a navigable 3D environment, Ella : a study in realism is more about letting you experience what is now technologically possible than being a conventional game. Be warned, though, that it can get really resource-intensive for your PC. Its graphics are far better than Arma 3 or Resident Evil 3.

Like watching a music video

For graphics-oriented players, it might be difficult to believe that Ella : a study in realism was developed entirely in the Godot game engine. It’s more of a walkthrough on a hyperrealistic 3D rendering rather than a conventional video game. More than anything, it’s a demonstration of what’s possible by using free and open-source development engines. Noting this, this has a pretty short playthrough.

You can navigate around an average-looking apartment, with the titular Ella in the center, doing her exercises. It has a cinematic camera mode that automatically moves you through the apartment. If you want to explore by yourself, use WASD or the Arrow Keys to manually move in the 3D space, with the mouse to look around. Examine the tiniest details or appreciate how lighting works in this sim.

Lastly, take note that the default settings for this game are highly resource-intensive. Running it on a mid-ranged system will definitely cause it to lag, heat up, or outright crash. If you’re curious about experiencing it for yourself, you can try forcing a lower graphics setting. However, this drastically reduces the quality and defeats the purpose of a realistic simulation.

Push the boundaries

With Ella : a study in realism, players get a short demo of what is now possible, even with free and open-source game development environments. It lets you view high-resolution graphics and high-quality textures, either automatically in a cinematic mode or manually through an intuitive keyboard and mouse interface. It has an option to lower graphics quality but you should stay with the default settings if your system can handle it.