Hungarian videogame brings the ’40s Budapest back to life
Eltűnt Budapest (Lost Budapest) has been a project in development for years now, and while the finish line of this grand idea of modelling the entire city of Budapest is still quite far away, you can now download a playable demo.
24 reports that a few young Hungarians started this project six years ago. They wanted to create an interactive game where you can roam the streets of early 1940s Budapest, before the damages of WWII.
The project is not finished yet as Balázs Handler and his former university peers are still working on creating the model of pre-world war Budapest.
They started with the Erzsébet Bridge and its surroundings, and now they have a playable demo with mesmerising details.
According to Octogon, Balázs Handler first wanted to recreate the Erzsébet Bridge because it is one of the most photographed buildings of the Hungarian capital. Besides that, being able to walk on is an entirely different feeling than just browsing pictures.
Balázs started recreating the bridge by using old photographs and blueprints, and a few years later another game inspired him to conceive the first-person video game. Other people also helped him with their own 3D models, and in the end, they used the Unreal Engine videogame engine to create the Eltűnt Híd (Lost Bridge).
The game has been downloaded more than 3,000 times, and this inspired the developer to continue recreating the rest of the bridges of Budapest. Others also joined him in the process, and thus they accomplished to create a free downloadable game where you can wander in Budapest, from Petőfi Bridge to the iconic Chain Bridge.
You can also climb up to the Gellért Hill to admire the Hungarian capital or take a stroll to Ferenciek Square on the Pest side.
Their final goal is to create a game based on real places following a fictional plot that showcases the 1940s Budapest and the events of that era, they wrote.
You can download the game from HERE.
The team relentlessly continues the realisation of this dream project, and have added the originally blue Margaret Bridge,
as well as new functions, like new lightning, a weather system and the possibility of driving a car.
Apart from being able to drive a car, you can also hop on the trams of the era.
Concerning the future of the game, they developers have announced that they are making a VR program for an exhibition next year.
Feel free to encourage the hard work of the team by downloading the game demo, which is entirely free, and no registration is required. Show them some love and enjoy the 1940s Budapest.
Source: 24.hu, octogon.hu, eltuntbudapest.wixsite.com