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In game development, a roughness map is a texture used in physically-based rendering (PBR) workflows to define how rough or smooth a surface is. It controls how light interacts with the surface, affecting the sharpness or blurriness of reflections. 
Purpose: It determines the microsurface detail of a material. A rough surface (e.g., sandpaper) scatters light, creating diffuse reflections, while a smooth surface (e.g., polished metal) produces sharp, clear reflections.

How it works: The map is typically grayscale, where:
Black (0) represents a perfectly smooth surface (sharp reflections).

White (1) represents a fully rough surface (diffuse, no clear reflections).

Gray values indicate varying levels of roughness in between.

Usage: Roughness maps are often combined with other PBR maps (like albedo, normal, and metallic maps) to create realistic materials in game engines like Unity or Unreal Engine.

File format: Commonly stored as a grayscale image (e.g., PNG or TGA) and applied to a material’s roughness or specular slot in a shader.

It’s a key component for achieving realistic lighting and material effects in modern games.