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SPECIFICTION
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Gaea

quadspinner.com

From $99/mo Free plan Windows
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Spec score 8.3 #4 of 27 in Game Map Generators

What it is

Gaea is a Windows terrain design application for VFX, games, and virtual production. It builds terrain from procedural forms, imported data, or hand-drawn elements, then applies simulations for erosion, debris, glaciers, rivers, snow, and vegetation. It can produce terrain-aware color, textures, masks, material zones, vegetation data, and flow maps. Exports include heightfields, meshes, point clouds, textures, masks, and other terrain data. Bridges connect Gaea with Unreal Engine and Houdini; the Gaea2Houdini plugin requires a Professional or Enterprise license. Gaea also offers node-based compositing and a hybrid render engine.

The Community Edition is free for non-commercial use. The listed perpetual-license prices are $99 a month for Indie, $199 a month for Professional, and $299 a month for Enterprise; each is described as a one-time price. Gaea requires Windows, an AVX2-capable CPU, and at least 16 GB of RAM. CPU-only operation is supported; GPU compute needs CUDA 12.5 or higher or HIP 6.0 or higher.

Spec sheet

Purpose
Gaea is a terrain design platform for VFX, games, and virtual production.Read 3 Oct 2026 · quadspinner.com
Free plan
YesRead 20 Sep 2026 · quadspinner.com
Integrations
Gaea provides bridges for Unreal Engine and Houdini; the Gaea2Houdini plugin requires a Professional or Enterprise license.Read 3 Oct 2026 · docs.gaea.app
Security
QuadSpinner says its Gaea binaries are signed with a code-signing certificate and provides an installer VirusTotal report.Read 3 Oct 2026 · docs.gaea.app
Support
Support, maintenance, and minor updates are included at no additional cost, and the company says it does not offer a guaranteed support SLA.Read 3 Oct 2026 · quadspinner.com
Headquarters
Questa, New Mexico, USARead 28 Sep 2026 · quadspinner.com
Maker
QuadSpinner is a bootstrapped software studio based in Questa, New Mexico, founded in 2008 by Dax Pandhi and Cynthia Najim.Read 3 Oct 2026 · quadspinner.com
Commercial use
The Community Edition is for non-commercial use; the Indie edition is listed for individuals or businesses under US $100,000 in annual gross revenue or capital.Read 3 Oct 2026 · quadspinner.com
Exports
Gaea exports heightfields, meshes, point clouds, textures, masks, and other terrain data.Read 3 Oct 2026 · quadspinner.com
License connectivity
Gaea must connect to the internet at least once every 28 days to refresh its license; offline licenses are available for Enterprise at additional cost.Read 3 Oct 2026 · quadspinner.com
Notable restriction
Using Gaea or its assets to train AI systems is prohibited without QuadSpinner’s prior written consent.Read 3 Oct 2026 · quadspinner.com
Simulation
Gaea provides physics-driven terrain simulations including erosion, debris, glaciers, rivers, snow, and vegetation.Read 3 Oct 2026 · quadspinner.com
Surface and color
Gaea can generate terrain-aware color, textures, masks, material zones, vegetation data, and flow maps.Read 3 Oct 2026 · quadspinner.com
System requirements
Gaea requires Windows, a CPU supporting AVX2, and at least 16 GB RAM; GPU compute requires CUDA 12.5 or higher or HIP 6.0 or higher, though CPU-only use is supported.Read 3 Oct 2026 · quadspinner.com
Terrain creation
Gaea supports terrain creation from procedural forms, imported data, and hand-drawn elements.Read 3 Oct 2026 · quadspinner.com

Plans and prices

Indie $99 a month One-time price for a perpetual license 8,192 × 8,192 single-build resolution · One named user · Up to 2 computers · Revenue under $100,000 Read 20 Sep 2026 · quadspinner.com
Professional $199 a month One-time price for a perpetual license 16,384 × 16,384 single-build resolution · 262,144 × 262,144 tiled-world resolution · One named user · Up to 2 computers · Revenue under $1,000,000 Read 20 Sep 2026 · quadspinner.com
Enterprise $299 a month One-time price for a perpetual license 16,384 × 16,384 single-build resolution · 262,144 × 262,144 tiled-world resolution · One machine per license · Revenue over $1,000,000 Read 20 Sep 2026 · quadspinner.com
Community Edition Free Free for evaluation and non-commercial use · create and view terrains up to 4096 × 4096 · export up to 1024 × 1024 Read 3 Oct 2026 · quadspinner.com
Indie $99, paid once One-time price for a perpetual license Node-locked · one named user on up to 2 computers · annual gross revenue under US $100,000 · 8K resolution Read 3 Oct 2026 · quadspinner.com
Professional $199, paid once One-time price for a perpetual license Node-locked · one named user on up to 2 computers · annual gross revenue under US $1,000,000 · 16K resolution · 256K with tiles Read 3 Oct 2026 · quadspinner.com
Enterprise $299, paid once One-time price for a perpetual license Movable license · annual gross revenue over US $1,000,000 · 16K resolution · 256K with tiles Read 3 Oct 2026 · quadspinner.com

Every Gaea plan and price →

Strong points and limits

Strong points

  • Creates terrain from procedural forms, imported data, and hand-drawn elements
  • Simulates erosion, debris, glaciers, rivers, snow, and vegetation
  • Exports heightfields, meshes, point clouds, textures, and masks
  • CPU-only use is supported
  • Support, maintenance, and minor updates are included

Limits

  • Runs on Windows only
  • Requires an AVX2-capable CPU and at least 16 GB RAM
  • License needs an internet connection every 28 days
  • Community Edition is for non-commercial use

Who it suits

Gaea suits terrain artists and teams creating environments for VFX, games, or virtual production. Its free edition is restricted to non-commercial use, while the listed paid editions set revenue and build-resolution limits.

Verdict

Gaea combines several terrain-creation methods, simulation tools, and export formats in a Windows application. Check the edition limits and recurring license-connection requirement against your project and setup.

Where Specifiction places it

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