Unreal Engine 5 has been to bring vast 3D open worlds to life. Now one indie developer is using the software to breathe live into 2D decorative art. Fresco is an Ancient Egypt-themed action-adventure game where the artwork on the walls isn't merely decoration to create an atmospheric setting – they're playable environments.
The upcoming game will require players to switch between playing in 3D as an archaeologist exploring an Ancient Egyptian temple to 2D as a figure painted in frescoes on the walls. It will be necessary to advance both characters to progress.
With decals projections in UE5, you can control characters inside ancient Egyptian frescoes. from r/IndieDev
Kelonia Games created the effect of the wall art coming to life by using decal projections in Unreal Engine 5. Adobe Substance Painter was used to make the frescoes themselves.
The game features both 2D and 3D puzzles, requiring players to observe and manipulate environments around each of the two characters. The mechanic of bringing the 2D art to life as part of the game adds an element of novel surprise and extra mystery to the atmospheric world. It's also lends the game a unique art style, allowing us to play a character drawn in the style of Ancient Egyptian art.
The twist is reminding some of Mario Odyssey and Zelda Link Between Worlds. It's also triggered some debate among devs about the best way to achieve its mechanic. While some suggest it could be done by rendering into a single texture, it seems going with the decals provides much more flexibility and allows quality blending with the wall's normals and other underlying textures.
Using Substance Painter to create these golden frescoes. from r/IndieGaming
Testing combat in our game Fresco: 2D/3D with decals in UE5 from r/UnrealEngine5
In co-op, each player will adopt one of the two roles in the game.
👀 Play in co-op: the first player becomes the archaeologist, while the second becomes a character inside the frescoes.#gamedev #indiegame pic.twitter.com/bK4Po6TmAEMarch 9, 2026
👀 Here the #WIP trailer of FRESCO. You control characters inside ancient Egyptian frescoes.#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #IndieGameDev pic.twitter.com/ZuU18P7uMwMarch 1, 2026
There's no release date as yet. You can wishlist Fresco on Steam.
For more uses of Epic's game engine, see how KPop Demon Hunters used Unreal Engine 5.
