Terrain work is a loop
A useful terrain pass means shaping the land, painting materials, placing water, testing traversal, and fixing awkward areas. Then the game changes. A new spawn, quest route, or build zone can send you back through the same loop.
Iteration is the expensive part
Large changes are hard to make with a brush. Moving a mountain range or widening a valley can disturb materials, water, paths, and nearby gameplay space. Teams often keep a weak first draft because rebuilding it feels too costly.
Generation changes the starting point
Prompt-driven terrain makes broad changes cheap enough to try. You can compare several coastlines, biome layouts, or elevation profiles before committing the rest of the game to one world shape.
Hand work still matters
Generation should remove blank-canvas work, not the decisions that make a map yours. Exact combat spaces, roads, landmarks, props, and final traversal polish still benefit from a developer’s hand. Start with a useful world, then spend your time on the places players will notice.