[skeletonjelly]

I was just reading about this yesterday actually. Wiki mentions the tricks learnt from GTAIV were exploited to their full extent to make the best use of the hardware for GTAV.

> While both games were developed for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, the team were able to render the world of Grand Theft Auto V with greater detail than in Grand Theft Auto IV because they had become familiar with the hardware over time. Art director Aaron Garbut opined that while the aging hardware of the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 were tiring to work with, "I think one of the most amazing features is the way we handle lighting in the game to maintain a consistent look despite the constraints on realistic lighting and shadows on current hardware", he explained.[28] Vice president Dan Houser agreed with this sentiment, explaining that working on Grand Theft Auto IV with relatively new hardware was difficult, but "now we know what the hardware's capable of, so it's become a lot easier to move things along and a lot more fun, too".

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gta5#Development

[addandsubtract]

Don't forget the experience they also gained with Red Dead Redemption and Max Payne 3.