OpenGL 3D Procedural Terrain Generation

A real-time OpenGL procedural terrain generation engine using Perlin Noise to generate height maps. Originally built on Windows using Visual Studio, this project has been ported to Linux using cross-platform CMake and C++17.

YouTube Video

Features

The engine generates realistic terrain meshes procedurally using:

• Perlin Noise Height Maps - Multi-octave noise generation with configurable parameters
• Real-time Console Commands - Interactive terrain manipulation without recompilation
• Water Rendering - Simple water shader with DUDV texture distortion at height zero

Available Commands

Access the in-game console to modify terrain parameters in real-time:

• help - Prints a list of available commands
• set_seed_x - Sets the seed used to generate Perlin Noise to x
• set_heightMapRes_x - Sets the height map texture resolution to x * x
• set_octaves_x - Sets the number of octaves from Perlin Noise to x
• set_amplitude_x - Sets the amplitude from Perlin Noise to x
• set_persistence_x - Sets the persistence from Perlin Noise to x
• set_smooth_x - Sets the smoothness from Perlin Noise to x
• set_terrainSize_x - Sets the length and width of the terrain to x
• set_water_on - Enables water rendering
• set_water_off - Disables water rendering

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Prerequisites & Dependencies

To compile and run this project on Linux, you will need a C++17 compliant compiler (gcc or clang), cmake, and the following development libraries:

• OpenGL (Core Graphics Drivers)
• GLEW (Extension Wrangler)
• GLFW (Windowing & Input)
• FreeGLUT (Utility Toolkit)
• FreeImage (Image Loading)

Dependency Installation

CachyOS / Arch Linux

Most libraries are available via the standard package manager (pacman). Note that freeimage must be installed via the Arch User Repository (AUR) using an AUR helper like paru or yay.

# Install core build tools and standard repositories libraries
sudo pacman -S base-devel cmake glew glfw freeglut

# Install FreeImage from the AUR (Do NOT run with sudo)
paru -S freeimage
# OR:
yay -S freeimage

Ubuntu / Debian

If setting up on a Debian-based distribution, use apt:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install build-essential cmake libglew-dev libglfw3-dev freeglut3-dev libfreeimage-dev libglm-dev

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Building the Project

You can build the project either directly through the terminal or by using Visual Studio Code.

Method 1: Via Terminal (Standard CMake)

From the project root directory, run the following commands to configure and compile:

# Create and enter the build directory
mkdir build && cd build

# Configure the project using native Linux compilers
cmake -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Debug ..

# Compile the executable
make

Method 2: Via VS Code (Recommended)

1. Open the project folder in VS Code.

2. Install the following extensions:

   • C/C++ (by Microsoft)
   • CMake Tools (by Microsoft)

3. Open the Command Palette (Ctrl + Shift + P) and run CMake: Select a Kit. Choose your native host compiler (e.g., GCC or Clang). Do NOT select clang-cl.

4. Run CMake: Configure.

5. Click the Build button on the bottom blue status bar (or press F7).

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Running the Application

There are two critical platform constraints to keep in mind when running this application on modern Linux systems:

1. Working Directory: The application loads assets (Shaders, Textures) using relative paths. It must be executed with the project root folder as the working directory.

2. Wayland Display Server: If you are running a Wayland-based desktop (default on CachyOS), GLEW requires an X11 context to initialize properly (No GLX display error). You must pass the GLFW_PLATFORM=x11 environment variable to force XWayland compatibility.

Running via Terminal

Always run the executable from the project root directory (not from inside the build folder):

# Ensure you are in the project root folder
cd /path/to/OpenGL-Procedural-Terrain

# Launch the app forcing X11 context compatibility
GLFW_PLATFORM=x11 ./build/OpenGL_Procedural_Terrain

Running via VS Code (Automated Setup)

To make clicking the Play [▷] button in VS Code work seamlessly without errors, create or update .vscode/settings.json in your project root with the following configuration:

{
    "cmake.debugConfig": {
        "cwd": "${workspaceFolder}",
        "environment": [
            {
                "name": "GLFW_PLATFORM",
                "value": "x11"
            }
        ]
    }
}

Once saved, clicking Launch / Play on the bottom status bar will properly route the assets paths and handle display window contexts automatically.

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References

OpenGL Step by Step

ThinMatrix Beginners OpenGL 3D Game Tutorials

ThinMatrix OpenGL Water Tutorials

Dependencies

freeglut | glew | GLFW | FreeImage