Video games have come a long way since the days of Adventure on Atari, when players were represented by what was literally a square on the screen. Graphics technology has evolved to the point where there are some games that genuinely look lifelike in some instances, especially when gamers install realistic graphics mods. In fact, some video games look so realistic nowadays that they can actually trick people into thinking they're real life.

That's exactly what happened to Pakistani politician Khurram Nawaz Gandapur, who tweeted a video of what appeared to be a plane narrowly avoiding an oil tanker on the runway. In the since-deleted tweet, Gandapur said, "Narrow escape of an aircraft which could have ended in a great disaster. Miraculous save by the pilot's presence of mind."

However, the video wasn't of a real event. On the contrary, it was a clip from Grand Theft Auto 5. YouTuber The UiGamer wanted to simulate what could potentially happen if an oil tanker came in the way of an airplane on the runway during a landing, and used Rockstar's open world game to do so. Twitter users were quick to point out the Pakistani politician's mistake, and he ended up deleting the tweet.

The fact that Pakistani politician Khurram Nawaz Gandapur was tricked by Grand Theft Auto 5 is a testament to the game's graphics, which still mostly hold up today. There are some textures and things that look a bit dated compared to some of the more cutting-edge titles out there, including Rockstar's own Red Dead Redemption 2, but otherwise the game still has graphics good enough that it's able to trick some people into thinking it's real life.

Moving forward, video games are sure to become even more graphically intensive and impressive. The next-generation video game consoles, like the PlayStation 5 and Project Scarlett, are expected to represent yet another leap forward in power, which will bring with it significant visual improvements across the board. And with Grand Theft Auto 6 likely in development for next-gen consoles, it should be capable of tricking a lot more people that footage of it is real life and not a video game.

Grand Theft Auto 5 is out now for PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One.

Source: Vice