Hyper Light Breaker - Terrain
For Hyper Light Breaker, I collaborated with Lead Technical Artist Len White to develop large-scale procedural terrains in Houdini, utilizing Heightfields in combination with traditional SOP geometry workflows.
The process begins with a Photoshop-painted map, where each layer represents key elements such as, landmasses, combat zones, paths and more. These layers are imported into Copernicus (COPs), where they are individually processed to generate the base data for terrain generation. From there, a series of SOP-based operations build the final landscape through a multi-step procedural pipeline, which can be explored in the following images and videos.
Once the terrain is generated in Houdini, points are scattered on the surface and grouped by types like, boss hill, elites, ocean, etc. These bulk point are imported into Unreal and used to by our Decking system to place assets in an intentional way. To enrich this placement data, the bulk points are accompanied by a set of maps generated in Houdini that encode information ranging from directional vectors to biome details, providing a robust dataset for procedural asset distribution.
You can learn more about the Decking system here: https://randireynolds.artstation.com/projects/5Wwyzg
Photoshop vs. Unreal: A side-by-side comparison of the original Photoshop map and the final realized terrain in Unreal Engine.
Overview: A wide look at various components of the terrain being layered together within the main Heightfield.
COP Network: A closer look at how the Photoshop layers are isolated, transformed and converted into usable data.
Initial Elevation: Demonstrates the first pass of height data being added to the Heightfield to define the foundational landmasses.
Boss Hills Construction: Focuses on the generation of distinct Boss Hills found in game.
Cliff Extensions: Shows how unusable terrain regions are transformed into dramatic cliff formations that serve as natural sightline blockers.
Beach Generation: Details the process of sculpting and blending beach regions.
Bulk Points: Points scattered across the terrain surface, representing locations where assets will be placed by the Decking system.
Maps: From left to right, top to bottom: path distance, shoreline distance, biome masks, normals, height and the control map (beach mask and biome distance). These maps provide additional data for procedural placement.
In-Game Shot 1
In-Game Shot 1