GTA 5, in spite of being known as a controversial and violent video game, has been time and again used in various atypical ways to achieve artistic results. We've covered countless imaginative and creative art projects using the game as their proverbial canvas, exploring themes like fear, social issues and whether or not the real world is actually just a simulation. However, would you have thought that Rockstar Games' highly popular open world action-adventure game would be used for science?
There has been a video about self-driving cars in GTA 5, however that was a parody and painted a not too pretty picture of the results. In spite of that video, there is now a prevailing positive link between driverless cars and the game. When you've got a game world as detailed and realistic as that in Grand Theft Auto 5, the possibilities to use it as a test-bed are obvious.
The self driving car fad has been on the rise recently, which wishes to achieve the age-old Sci-Fi dream/prediction that one day we won't have to hold a steering wheel when we want to go somewhere in our vehicle. Several projects are running concurrently, with the Google Car being the most prominent.
The self-driving car concept was born out of the idea that what if the GPS in your car controls the steering wheel instead of telling you what to do. Obviously the actual systems are significantly more complex, as self-driving cars need to recognise obstructions, traffic, lights, pedestrians, animals and other sources of danger on the fly.
One of the best ways to create a safe self-driving algorithm is to use an AI that can learn, and teach it everything it needs to know in a simulation. We've often said that while GTA is grounded in realism, it still isn't quite 'realistic' in terms of multiple mechanics, primarily physics, which are an important part of driving.
