The creator of GTA IV accidentally revealed a secret about water physics that he hadn't known for 17 years

Grand Theft Auto IV technical director Obbe Vermeil made a surprising discovery nearly two decades after the game's release. The Rockstar Games veteran responded to a video on social media showing a curious interaction between a helicopter and water: the rotor blades disperse the water in a shallow body of water, creating a dry area around the aircraft. The video's creator called this proof that the game was ahead of its time, but Vermeil admitted that this effect was never intentionally intended by the developers.

According to the specialist, the system was initially created solely for visual variety. A grid of approximately 128 by 128 cells forms around the player, each of which can push surrounding objects upward, taking into account their density and the height of other objects. Obstacles such as boats or low-flying helicopters directly affect the density of objects in this grid. Then, the graphics team somehow adapted the water to this mechanic. Vermeil explained that by the time of the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 consoles, graphics technology had become too complex for him to fully track all the possible consequences of such interactions.

Grand Theft Auto IV was released in 2008 and continues to amaze both players and its creators. One fan previously managed to complete the game 100% without stealing a single car, which only confirms the depth of its mechanics, many of which, as it turns out, arose entirely by accident.