Grand Theft Auto IV/Features: Difference between revisions

The Graphics of GTA IV have profitied from the new consoles it's on and new game engine, which during the [[GTA III Era]] suffered. New sunlight and weather effects give the city a whole different appearance as the time of day progresses. Volumetric lighting effects allow sunlight to stream realistically into dusty interiors. Police spotlights also benefit from this effect when helicopters kick up debris. In cars, you can see real reflections on the rear- and side-view mirrors.

Animations for NPC movements such as walking, falling, pushing, and others are created "on the fly", due to the use of the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euphoria_(software) Euphoria game engine] created by NaturalMotion, so each player's experience will be unique. Gamers are no longer subjected to prerecorded animations. The core technology is the Dynamic Motion Synthesis (DMS) system. This new physics engine gives characters a "central nervous system" allowing more natural, unscripted movements. It also adds weight to each characters footsteps and causes them to transition depending on their surroundings. This is apparent when characters walk up and down stairs; instead of moving like the stairs are a flat surface, the stance of the character changes depending on if they are moving up or down. Characters react realistically to being hit with gunfire, cars, and melee weapons or fists. Falling/thrown characters will react as in real life. They won't simply be limp, lifeless ragdolls. Nor will they use a canned "super hero" animation like before. Players are also able to push people out of the way, rather than "floating" past them as in older games.

Although the size of the map is no bigger than [[State of San Andreas|San Andreas]], the extreme detail of the city has been enriched to a unique depth . There is no open space, and every inch of the city tells a story.

Normal (bump) maps provide much more detail in models than the underlying polygons, as well as giving materials more texture and depth. Road and building textures are more varied than in previous GTAs. On some roads potholes or metal plates where the road has been dug up can be found. Modern pixel shaders give water, glass, cars, etc., more realistic reflections and shininess than the earlier games.