GTA 6 : 600,000 animations

"Each of them went through the studio's art direction, which required the creation of around 600,000 unique animations. However, the external detailing is just the tip of the iceberg. Each pedestrian has their own personality model, which determines the nature of their reactions: their base temperament, tendency toward aggression, current location, accumulated visual experience, and how the player has previously treated them. In addition, each city district has a unique demographic and professional flavor." — Simon Parkin in Edge's exclusive coverage of Grand Theft Auto VI .

The AI system for random passersby in GTA 6 is so complex that at certain stages of development, it plunged the studio into virtual chaos. To manage this enormous volume of work, the company's management had to form a dedicated team consisting exclusively of writers, directors, and producers. The existence of this dedicated working group was officially confirmed by the developers themselves in a recent extensive analysis by our colleagues at Edge magazine.

"This philosophy extends fully to the way the streets function," the publication emphasizes. "Instead of relying entirely on standard procedural generation to create a faceless crowd, Rockstar has established a fully-fledged Los Angeles unit. Its key goal is to imbue every resident of the State of Leonidas with deep individuality and consistent behavior."

As noted in the journalists' research, this approach required colossal resources: the studio's animators manually worked out the movements of each passerby, resulting in a cosmic number of 600,000 animation fragments.

Visual details are only part of the mechanics: "Virtual pedestrians are endowed with internal character traits that influence their decisions. Algorithms take into account their temperament, temperament, the specific location of the encounter, the events the character has witnessed, and the overall history of their interactions with the player. The behavioral pattern changes from district to district, creating a realistic social and professional environment."

Expanding on the concept of "professional flair," Rockstar North co-director Rob Nelson shares specific details: "Which passerby will be the first to show aggression? How many will try to reach for my hidden weapon? And how many will simply test my mettle?" the article's author wryly quotes Nelson, comparing these questions to his daily psychological attitudes in front of the mirror.

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Source: pc-gamer