Grand Theft Auto V Enhanced scenic tour

There's a reason we're still playing Grand Theft Auto V. Rockstar have kept GTA V updated across console generations and PC tech upgrades. The game is better to play than ever, despite being over a decade old at this point. 

The latest overhaul, Grand Theft Auto V Enhanced, is the most ambitious yet. While the Enhanced edition has been available on PS5 and Xbox Series X/S since 2022, PC players recently received the altered edition in all its ray-traced glory.

Today we’ll be taking a scenic tour through the updated look. Between the updated shadows, reflections, and overall fidelity, vanilla GTA V has never looked better.  

All the photos taken below were created using Rockstar’s in-game Rockstar Editor. This can be accessed by recording clips in multiplayer or single player, and then pulling them into the Editor. You have the option to move the camera, adjust the depth of field, access filters, and more. If you’re a player who loves to appreciate the beauty and detail that devs put into their game worlds, I encourage you to take some in-game photos yourself!

Let’s start our little excursion on the beachside. Why? Because it’s summertime! Also because this gives us a nice look at almost everything new added in with the Enhanced edition. Shadows on the sand, reflections in the ocean, and the overall sharpness can be spotted with ease here. 


The first two images here really highlight how great the newly implemented shadow systems are. In the second image (GTA V not enhanced) we see a sharply rendered shadow. This perfectly matches the silhouette of the player, but that is not at all what shadows look like in real life. The first image (GTA V Enhanced) gives us a true-to-life rendition where the shadow has soft edges and gently tapers at the end.

It isn’t just shadows that are getting a boost. The reflections and overall fidelity are making quite a jump too! You could show someone these screenshots in 2025, and they’d be convinced they were taken from a game that came out this year. For me, it’s encouraging to see how scalable games can be going into the future. This is night and day compared to when this game first launched in 2013, over a decade ago!

The above image of the Ferris wheel along the water is stunning. Not only are we getting ray-traced reflections, but the way in which the image reacts with the subtle waves makes it quite a convincing reflection. The pier itself is a good example of how clean the image is. Looking closely at the shops and ride, there is a lot of tiny detail, but it’s rendered with great clarity. Each bit of text, the mechanics of the ride, and the wood grain below are all legible to the eye and contain very little aliasing. 

Alright, I think we’ve been at the beach long enough. Let’s avoid a sunburn, and cruise into the city.

What is a Grand Theft Auto game if not the hustle and bustle of its city? In GTA V Enhanced edition, the overall interactivity of Los Santos gets to shine. From updated bounce lighting to even the most unnoticeable of details, there’s lots to dig into.
Let’s first take a look at some of the shockingly small details that can make all the difference. I’m first showing you this shot of the Lifeinvader building to give you a sense of where we are. Got it? Now let’s go deeper.
Zooming in on one of the passing cars, we can see again how stunning and accurate the ray-traced reflections are. Not only can we clearly see a reflection of the Lifeinvader building, but the street light, asphalt, and everything else is also reflected on the side of the metallic car. We also have the same reflections on the rim of the tire! Is this even necessary? Probably not, but by gosh it’s cool to look at. And it’s not just a simple reflection; just as with the water we looked at earlier, it gives us a material accurate distortion of the reflections. Really impressive.

Here’s another great example of lots of reflections all working in tandem. Look closely, and you’ll see it all. The front of the semitruck accurately reflects the clouds and blue tint of the sky. The truck itself also reflects onto the passing car while the car’s silvery blue hue gives it a slight tint. Even though this still image looks great, trust me—this all looks even more impressive while in motion. Flying down a Los Santos road at 90 miles an hour and seeing each passerby reflected in the vehicle is a sight to behold. 

Looks like the sun is getting real low, so let’s take it to the night streets.

Sunset in Los Santos is a stunning time. The colors of the sky have always been brilliant, but the new ray-traced shadows and reflections make this time magic.

Take a look here at all the reflection sources that can be seen on the car. Again, what’s impressive here is how it all works together to create one convincingly real image. The asphalt, the green light, and the lights from the upcoming skyscraper's windows all show up alongside this car in perfect clarity.

One of my favorite places to do business (all above board, I swear) in GTA V is my arcade. The look you see on my character’s face was my real-life reaction to seeing the reflections on the side of this glass Madam Nazar box. You can literally see the rest of the room. I wasn’t even planning on taking a photo here, but I had to show that these upgraded reflections can be found everywhere. The devs at Rockstar have done a good job of implementing these features across the board. 

Now look, I know if you have to read the word “ray-tracing” one more time, you might just completely tune out. But what if I combined the words “ray-tracing” with “rainy water puddles reflecting neon”?
There’s really no sexier view of reflections than a moody drive through Los Santos in the rain. Flat out: This is the best the game has ever looked. Sunsets and rainbows don’t hold a candle to the amazing visuals that water puddles provide. Not to mention, making a tight Dom Toretto-style powerslide in the rain is a recipe for cinematic photos.

Reflections aside, what really makes this effect work is the dynamic water pooling. In the original release of GTA V, there were simply wet textures applied to the surface of the ground when it rained. In the Enhanced edition, water pools up in low spots and can dynamically interact with the surroundings such as tire splashes and long-range reflections. 

We’ve now seen some highlights of what makes GTA V worth jumping back into. Whether you’re a fidelity fanatic or a casual player who just likes to take in the vibes, there’s a lot to be seen. Each minute of the day provides a new light angle, new reflection, and new opportunities to admire the beauty of this realized world. This could very well be the last visual improvement we see until GTA VI comes out, so let’s enjoy it while it lasts. Next stop: Vice City!