frame friday 118: that damage model from the extended look still blows my mind

Nine weeks out and I still catch myself rewatching that one scene from the extended look. You know the one. The damage model on display is just absurd. Every dent, every scrape, the way the metal actually crumples instead of just swapping textures. It's the kind of detail I used to dream about back when I was playing San Andreas on a PS2 and thinking the car deformation was peak gaming.

And the cinematic look of everything in that sequence. The lighting, the camera work, the way the whole thing feels like a movie but you're still in control. Rockstar has always been good at that, but this feels like a whole other level. I keep thinking about what it'll be like to just drive around Vice City and have random fender benders look that good. Not scripted, not a cutscene, just the game engine doing its thing while I'm free roaming.

The fact that they're pulling this off on a PS5 is what really gets me. No PC version announced, no next gen refresh to hide behind. Just the base console hardware and it already looks like this. I know people complain about 30fps, but if the tradeoff is this level of visual fidelity and physics simulation, I'll take it every time. Rockstar's devs are actual wizards. I don't know how they do it, but I'm glad they do.

Anyway, just wanted to gush about that scene for a bit. Ten weeks feels like forever, but at least we have these little moments to dissect until November.

Source: r/GTA6 · Curated content.

if that crumple is real per-hit deformation and not some scripted thing, mechanic RP just got a massive upgrade. on gta5 servers a crash means your car either smokes a little or straight up explodes, no in between. body shop characters, insurance scams, crash scenes that actually look like something. and yeah id take 30fps for that easy, RP folks care way more about the world reacting than framecount

What gets me is how a wrecked car becomes a character. In Bullitt the Mustang looks worse with every block of that chase and you feel each hit. If Leonida leaves real scars on your ride, that's storytelling through sheet metal. I'll probably baby one car the entire game just to watch it age.