List of games using procedural generation

Procedural generation is a common technique in computer programming to automate the creation of certain data according to guidelines set by the programmer. Many games generate aspects of the environment or non-player characters procedurally during the development process in order to save time on asset creation. For example, SpeedTree is a middleware package that procedurally generates trees which can be used to quickly populate a forest.[1] Whereas most games use this technique to create a static environment for the final product, some employ procedural generation as a game mechanic, such as to create new environments for the player to explore. The levels in Spelunky are procedurally generated by rearranging premade tiles of geometry into a level with an entrance, exit, a solvable path between the two, and obstacles to that path.[2] Other games procedurally generate other aspects of gameplay, such as the weapons in Borderlands which have randomized stats and configurations.[3]

This is a list of video games that use procedural generation as a core aspect of gameplay. Games that use procedural generation solely during development as part of asset creation are not included.

  1. ^ Davenport, James (6 September 2017). "From the Elder Scrolls to the US Secret Service: Where videogame trees come from". PC Gamer.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference spelunky was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference borderlands was invoked but never defined (see the help page).