Why is it so hard to make realistic water/liquids in video games?
Water is made of lots of tiny particles, and these particles are constantly moving, colliding, and changing velocity. Solids have lots of particles, but they don't move, and you don't have to calculate their speed, or how they change position. It's harder for a CPU to calculate how to display wat…
The Short Answer
Water is made of lots of tiny particles, and these particles are constantly moving, colliding, and changing velocity. Solids have lots of particles, but they don't move, and you don't have to calculate their speed, or how they change position. It's harder for a CPU to calculate how to display water since there's so many calculations. Each time one water particle changes position, it will affect the ones next to it, which end up affecting all of the water particles. Forget making it look pretty, even trying to simulate water flow is hard, and there aren't precise equations to deal with laminar (smooth) and turbulent (rough) water flow. We can't simulate the path of each individual molecule accurately, so instead we guess and fudge it a bit. It's much easier to make realistic solids, since you don't have to worry about what's happening inside the solid, and the surface isn't changing much, if at all. — TL;DR too many calculations
Analysis
Key Concepts: Water, particles, don't
This explanation focuses on water, particles, don't and spans 161 words across 8 sentences. At 124% above the average Science explanation (72 words), this is one of the more thorough answers in this category, reflecting the complexity of the underlying question.
What This Answer Covers
The explanation opens with: “Water is made of lots of tiny particles, and these particles are constantly moving, colliding, and changing velocity.” It then elaborates by presenting a contrasting perspective, ultimately building toward a complete picture across 8 connected points.
How This Compares in Science
Ranked #21 of 500 Science questions by answer depth (top 5%). This places it in the comprehensive tier — the top quarter of most thoroughly answered questions. Questions at this depth typically involve multi-faceted topics requiring nuanced explanation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there a simple explanation for why it so hard to make realistic water/liquids in video games?
Water is made of lots of tiny particles, and these particles are constantly moving, colliding, and changing velocity. Solids have lots of particles, but they don't move, and you don't have to calculate their speed, or how they change position….
How detailed is this explanation compared to similar Science questions?
This is one of the most thorough answer at 161 words, ranked #21 of 500 Science questions by depth. The key concepts covered are water, particles, don't.
What approach does this answer take to explain it so hard to make realistic water/liquids in video games?
The explanation uses contrasting perspectives across 161 words. It is categorized under Science and addresses the question through 1 analytical lens.