Perlin Noise Procedural Landscape Generator

A 3D procedural terrain generator using Perlin noise algorithm, implemented in Kotlin with real-time 3D visualization.

Features

• Perlin Noise Algorithm: Pure implementation of Ken Perlin's noise algorithm for natural-looking terrain
• Octave Noise: Multiple noise frequencies combined for realistic fractal terrain details
• 3D Visualization: Real-time 3D rendering with perspective projection
• Interactive Camera:
  • Drag with mouse to rotate the view
  • Scroll wheel to zoom in/out
• Color-coded Elevation:
  • Deep blue: Deep water
  • Light blue: Shallow water
  • Tan: Sandy beaches
  • Green: Grasslands
  • Brown: Rocky mountains
  • White: Snow-capped peaks
• Procedural Generation: Click "Regenerate Terrain" to create new landscapes with different seeds

Project Structure

perlin/
├── src/
│   ├── Main.kt         - Application entry point and GUI setup
│   ├── PerlinNoise.kt  - Perlin noise algorithm implementation
│   ├── Terrain.kt      - Terrain generation and height mapping
│   └── Renderer3D.kt   - 3D rendering engine with camera controls
└── perlin.sh           - Manager script

[!NOTE] See QUICKSTART.md for more information on the project structure and manager script

Building

The project uses IntelliJ IDEA's build system.

Easy way (Recommended)

./perlin.sh

The script automatically detects Kotlin compiler from:

• System installation
• IntelliJ IDEA's bundled compiler
• Common installation paths

Manual compilation

kotlinc src/*.kt -include-runtime -d perlin.jar

Or use IntelliJ IDEA to build the project directly.

Running

Unified script (Recommended)

./perlin.sh              # Build (if needed) and run
./perlin.sh --run-only   # Skip build, just run
./perlin.sh --help       # Show all options

From JAR

java -jar perlin.jar

From IntelliJ IDEA

Open the project and run the Main.kt file.

Controls

• Mouse Drag: Rotate the camera sideways (horizontal rotation only)
• Mouse Scroll: Zoom in/out
• Regenerate Button: Create a new terrain with a different random seed

Technical Details

Perlin Noise Algorithm

The implementation uses:

• Permutation table with Fisher-Yates shuffle for pseudo-randomness
• Gradient interpolation with smooth fade curves
• Octave layering for fractal detail (default: 5 octaves)

3D Rendering

• Triangular mesh generation from height map
• Painter's algorithm for depth sorting
• Perspective projection with adjustable zoom
• Rotation matrices for camera control

Terrain Parameters

• Grid size: 100x100 vertices
• Scale: 0.05 (controls feature size)
• Octaves: 5 (detail levels)
• Height multiplier: 50.0 (vertical exaggeration)

Customization

You can modify terrain parameters in Main.kt:

Terrain(
    width = 100,            // Grid width
    height = 100,           // Grid height
    perlinNoise,
    scale = 0.05,           // Smaller = larger features
    octaves = 5,            // More = more detail
    heightMultiplier = 50.0 // Vertical scale
)

Requirements

• Java 8 or higher
• Kotlin compiler

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

Sponsor

If you like this project, consider supporting me by buying me a coffee.