GTA 6 Gameplay Leak 'Confirms' Ridiculous Water Physics

From what we've seen so far, Grand Theft Auto VI seems like it's going to pretty incredible in every department. The limited look we've had at the game in the trailer and screenshots has only dialled-up the excitement, with Rockstar seemingly able to combine the realism of Red Dead Redemption 2 with the zany aesthetic and chaotic nonsense that we associate with the GTA series.

A big part of what has caused so much chatter amongst the community is the attention to detail across the board, whether it be in the way that NPCs move and interact with each other, or in the environment or world at large.

With this latest effort being set in Vice City (GTA's fictional version of Miami), the map also features a lot of water, and so it's little surprise that attention has turned to water physics and what exactly interacting with the sea and waterways will look like. A set of leaks from VGT gaming news confirmed several key facts about the work that has gone into making water realistic, and what exactly that means for the player.

First, the rumours allege that Rockstar assembled a team of 20 engineers who were hired exclusively to create the water and make it as realistic a possible. Perhaps slightly outlandishly, though there's nothing to suggest it's false, the budget for this pursuit was anywhere between $200 and $300 million.

That has resulted in a game that includes surfing, hurricanes and floods, as the well as the first open-world with a dynamic high and low tide. In a post sharing the leaks over on Reddit, the responses were a mixture of doubt and cautious optimism, as well as skepticism over the claimed budget.

"Realistic water physics is the kind of thing gamers would think is cool but actual game programmers wouldn't. More than likely Rockstar just has up to standard water shaders with fake ripples and height and MAYBE fake waves similar to what Ubisoft did," one said.

"You’re insane if you think they’re spending 200 mil on water physics. If that was the case then the art and gameplay departments would be costing over a billion each," another added.

With little actual confirmation from Rockstar about the details behind the game's development, rumours and unfounded speculation are going to continue to swirl. Once the game is out in the wild for real, more details will emerge about the game's development, including the presumably astronomical budgets.