Reikon Games · Deep Silver · UE5 · 2025
Metal Eden
Associate Art Director Lead Environment Artist · Principal Level Artist · Lead Weapon Artist
← Back to workAbout the project
Metal Eden is a AA sci-fi FPS from Reikon Games, built in Unreal Engine 5: dense, high-velocity combat spaces that have to stay readable and cohesive at speed.
The art direction drew on Akira, Ghost in the Shell and Metal Gear Solid, shaped into a fresh, coherent visual language. I co-defined it and held it across the whole production.
Visit the Metal Eden site ↗My responsibilities & scope
Six disciplines, one production.
- Art Direction
Co-defined and maintained the game's visual identity across a team of 30+ artists.
- Environment & Level
Owned environment and level art from blockout to final polish across multiple maps.
- Weapons
Defined the weapon production pipeline, delivered weapon assets, and led the weapons team.
- Hard-Surface
Set the hard-surface visual direction and built the production pipeline with the tech team.
- Performance
Drove and personally executed performance optimization across all maps and content.
- Shipping
Drove the environments to final ship quality, closing out the maps as a two-person core.
Challenges
Three problems shaped the whole production.
The team grew from around 30 to over 120 during active production. Holding one visual standard across that took clear direction, shared workflows and constant review.
An industrial hard-surface sci-fi look few of the team had shipped before. I set the standards and guided them into a coherent style.
Dense geometry, many on-screen assets and fast movement made performance critical. I drove aggressive optimization of environments and levels for console and lower-end PC.
My contributions
All of the work below was created or led by me.
01 / 03
Level & Environment Art
Level art from blockout to final polish across multiple maps: composition, lighting, mood, color and the final detail pass.
Metal Eden · Environment
02 / 03
Weapon Art
Created the weapon assets, built the weapon pipeline with the tech team, and led the weapons art team. Complex hero weapons and first-person arms, taken from blockout to final in-game.
Metal Eden · Weapons
03 / 03
3D Art
Set the hard-surface direction and delivered assets from concept to final in-game, establishing the pipeline alongside the tech team.
Metal Eden · 3D Art
What the press said
Visually impressive. (TechRadar) Absolutely gorgeous to look at. (TechRadar) Dazzling presentation. (Niche Gamer) Impressive visuals and art direction. (Niche Gamer) Genuinely stunning vibe. (GamingBolt) One of the better looking games this year. (DLH.net) Looks amazing. (Niche Gamer) A lot to appreciate about the art direction. (GamingBolt) Enemy and gun designs stand out. (VGChartz) The art team deserves full praise. (G Style Magazine) Environments drip with detail. (G Style Magazine)