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Kamuela Ahuna
Software Development
World Generation Using Constrained Wave Function Collapse
My thesis focused on the Wave Function Collapse ( WFC ) procedural generation technique . Because it ’ s relatively new to the procedural generation field , I was excited to learn more about it and understand its strengths and limitations . My thesis used two different forms of WFC — a simple tiled model ( TWFC ) and an overlapping model ( OWFC ). I applied these in a hierarchal structure , which I called Hierarchal WFC ( HWFC ).
In my HWFC process , I generated a map that consists of a cohesive output that is divided into uniform cells . Cells choose which kind of content they may have by first running TWFC across the whole map . Once each cell is given a definition for itself and how it relates to its immediate neighbors , OWFC is run on each cell independently to generate an image that can later be used to populate each cell with a series of tiles . OWFC has an interesting strength in the simplicity
of how its generation rules are defined . However , some of its weaknesses are its lack of control and its lengthy generation time for large outputs . In the HWFC approach , the output is split up into uniform cells across a grid , which allows for amortization of the time cost as well as more control of the output . Splitting up the output into these cells allows for easy multi-threading , a feat normally much more difficult to accomplish with traditional OWFC approaches .
WFC is a fascinating procedure with much potential for the video game industry . Choosing this as my thesis topic allowed me to dive into a relatively new and unexplored subject matter . As more procedures come to light for the many different facets of video game design , I believe having the ability to develop a deep understanding of unexplored works is incredibly important .
68 SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT