The End of the Sun, a first-person adventure inspired by Slavic folklore, is available today on Xbox Series X|S. Its creators built the game’s village and some of its quests around Polish cultural heritage, including artifacts scanned at local museums and details gathered from the country’s landscapes and crafts.
The team worked with the Open-Air Museum in Szymbark and the Grociarnia Ethnographic Museum in Jastrzębia, using photogrammetry to create detailed 3D models of hundreds of objects and entire buildings. The developers say around 80% of the objects players encounter were scanned from real-world originals, retaining marks of wear and other imperfections.
Rather than using these objects only as scenery, the game makes some part of its exploration and activities. Players can investigate a traditional hand mill and learn how it grinds grain, while other quests involve tools used for twisting rope or sharpening a knife. Optional “Learn More” points provide information about unfamiliar objects and their history.
The developers say some artifacts also influenced the story itself: when they encountered an object that caught their interest, they sometimes adapted parts of a quest around it. Workshops and collections of tools also help suggest the work and everyday lives of the village’s inhabitants.
The game’s visual details extend beyond museum collections. Its environment includes scanned rocks from local nature reserves, bobbin lace from a local gallery, and floral decorations inspired by Zalipie, a village known for its painted houses. Buildings change across the story’s different time periods and four seasons, while vegetation and recordings of nature captured by the team help convey the changing environment.
The developers describe the result as an interactive world where players can explore cultural traditions and discover the stories behind objects, rather than encountering them as exhibits behind glass.
Sources: Xbox Wire.