Procedural Generation
Ongoing coverage on Procedural Generation.
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The designer of Diamond City, Little Lamplight, and Starfield's Neon thinks Bethesda's galaxy was just too big: 'I would have done a handful of planets with bespoke layouts'
Nate Purkeypile, a former Bethesda environment artist who worked on Fallout 3, Fallout 4, and Starfield, believes the galaxy in Starfield was too large and lacked bespoke design. He suggests a more focused approach with a handful of handcrafted planets, similar to The Outer Worlds, would have been more effective than the current procedural generation and stitched-together content.
"If I was in charge of Starfield, I would have not done it that way at all" - Former Bethesda veteran would've handled the RPG's 1,000 planets very differently
Former Bethesda Game Studios senior artist Nate Purkeypile believes Starfield's approach to generating 1,000 planets was flawed, suggesting a focus on fewer, more bespoke locations instead. He argues that the current procedural generation leads to repetitive content and diminishes the sense of surprise that defines Bethesda's RPGs. Purkeypile, who worked on titles like Fallout 3 and Skyrim, would have opted for a more curated world design, drawing parallels to Mass Effect 1 and No Man's Sky.
Revisiting the original No Man's Sky, 10 years on - and why it was always good in its own way
This article revisits the original 2016 release of No Man's Sky on its 10th anniversary, reflecting on its initial controversial launch and the developer Hello Games' subsequent extensive updates. Despite its flaws, the author finds value in the original game's focus on freeform exploration and discovery, contrasting it with the more feature-rich, life-sim aspects of the current version.
Daggerfall - 160 000 kvadratkilometer rollspelshistoria
The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall, released in 1996 for PC, offered a groundbreaking open world of 160,000 square kilometers, dwarfing modern titles like Skyrim. Despite its procedural generation leading to repetition, the game provided unparalleled freedom and immersion, setting a precedent for open-world design. It remains a significant milestone in RPG history, with a free version available and a Unity engine mod enhancing its experience.
UNFROST – Beta Sign Up | Alpha Beta Gamer
UNFROST is a cooperative Antarctic horror FPS where players form a squad to hunt ancient entities that cannot be killed by conventional means. The gameplay involves exploring abandoned stations and anomaly zones to gather intel, endure environmental threats like extreme cold and limited supplies, and prepare a nuclear solution. Teamwork is essential for survival, with players coordinating duties for evidence collection, defense, and regrouping amidst unpredictable procedural maps, dynamic objectives, and evolving monster behavior.
Endless Rifts and 11 Fresh Realms Land in World of ClaudeCraft v0.32.0
World of ClaudeCraft has released update v0.32.0, introducing procedural Rifts and a new continent to combat content fatigue. The update aims to provide an endless supply of challenges through dynamically generated dungeons. The game also features an optional community token, WOC, on Solana, emphasizing its non-pay-to-win model.
City of Titans discusses Unreal 5.7 upgrades, procedural generation, and enemy combat AI
Indie superhero MMORPG City of Titans, developed by Missing Worlds Media, has provided a Q2 update detailing progress on upgrading to Unreal Engine 5.7. The studio is also developing new in-engine tools for a controlled form of procedural generation for city areas and continuing to build out strategic enemy combat AI with configurable difficulty settings.
The Hunt Begins Again: Cult Classic “Sir, You Are Being Hunted” Arrives on Consoles Today — 13 Years After Its PC Debut
The cult classic stealth survival game Sir, You Are Being Hunted has been released on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch, thirteen years after its PC debut. Developed by Big Robot and published by Ocean Media, the game features procedurally generated British landscapes and a unique tweed-wearing robot hunting mechanic.
Infinite Loop: Backrooms – Beta Sign Up | Alpha Beta Gamer
Infinite Loop: Backrooms is a top-down roguelike shooter featuring procedurally generated rooms, weapon customization, and puzzle elements. Players assemble unique firearms, battle AI monsters, and uncover secrets to find one of approximately 60 endings. Beta sign-ups are currently open.
Unearthly - A simple sci-fi ARPG allowing players to create their own alien and power up selected weapons and abilities, coming soon to Steam! Demo available now!
The demo for Unearthly, a sci-fi Action RPG, is now available on Steam. Players can create custom aliens, power up weapons and abilities with collected crystals, and explore procedurally generated areas. The full game is planned for release on November 9th, 2026.
They Speak To Us – Beta Sign Up | Alpha Beta Gamer
They Speak To Us is a co-op horror game where players team up to capture monsters in procedurally generated levels for a mysterious employer. The gameplay involves collecting creatures, managing power cells, and using tools like a gravlight and bear traps to survive and escape before a time limit expires. A beta playtest sign-up is currently available.
Tomo Endless Blue funded on Kickstarter for almost $250,000 with a Switch 2 version on the way
Tomo: Endless Blue successfully concluded its Kickstarter campaign, raising nearly $250,000 from over 2200 backers. The game achieved multiple stretch goals, including the addition of a fishing minigame and community-designed elements. Development for a Nintendo Switch 2 version will proceed concurrently with the PC version.
Super Cableman - A new Amstrad game with a unique game style by TITAN
TITAN has released Super Cableman for the Amstrad CPC, an action game developed from a BASIC competition. The game features a unique mechanics-driven engine, dynamic levels, and a random cave generator for infinite replayability, with music by Pulsophonic and optimizations by Kukulcan.
Stars Reach talks about its infinite world generation system in its latest video
Playable Worlds detailed the new world generation system for Stars Reach in a recent video, explaining how it uses a library of topologies to create diverse planets. The studio also confirmed that the game is slated for an early access release this summer, with recent updates including chat bubbles and underwater effects.
Backrooms: Escape Together Launches On Xbox – But Don’t Expect To Survive Alone
The co-op survival horror game Backrooms: Escape Together has launched on Xbox Series X|S, following its PC release. Developed by Triiodide Studios, the game challenges up to six players to survive and escape the procedurally generated, unsettling environments inspired by the internet phenomenon. It is available for £16.74 and does not support Xbox Game Pass.
Pipes.exe – Open Beta | Alpha Beta Gamer
Pipes.exe, a first-person co-op horror game, is entering its open beta. Players act as QA testers for System 6D, navigating procedurally generated environments and surviving corporate horror. Teamwork is crucial for collecting artifacts, avoiding environmental threats, and managing performance under strict workplace rules.
Dust Front RTS – Beta Demo | Alpha Beta Gamer
Dust Front RTS is a classic real-time strategy game with grand strategy elements, featuring a non-linear campaign on a war-torn planet. Players build bases, gather resources, and command various units including tanks, infantry, and specialized vehicles. The game includes procedurally generated missions, a global map with simultaneous planning, and technology trees that unlock advanced weaponry.
Strange Island devlog #7 news
The developers of Strange Island have completed the main island environment after 11 months of work, focusing on adding detailed objects and environmental elements. They have significantly modified the MapMagic2 tool for procedural world generation and are now preparing a playable version for Steam Next Fest in September 2026. The team plans to add water effects, fog, optimization, and quests before aiming for an Early Access launch.
The Daily Grind: Do you prefer hand-crafted design, procedural generation, player-shaped worlds, or AI content in MMOs?
This article discusses player preferences for content creation in Massively Multiplayer Online Roleplaying Games (MMORPGs). It asks whether players favor hand-crafted zones, procedurally generated worlds, player-shaped sandbox environments, or AI-generated content. The piece encourages readers to share their opinions on the best approach for developing vast MMORPG worlds.
Stars Reach's Raph Koster wants the MMO to be as "wiki-resistant" as possible to keep "the magic more alive"
Raph Koster, lead designer of the upcoming MMO Stars Reach, aims to make the game "wiki-resistant" to preserve a sense of discovery and emergent gameplay. He explains that the game's procedural generation and dynamic systems mean players cannot simply look up strategies, fostering a more organic and evolving player experience. Stars Reach is set to enter early access this summer.
