Gridworld

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Gridworld is an artificial life simulator where abstract creatures evolve in a two-dimensional ecosystem, competing for food and struggling for survival. It offers a user-friendly interface to customize simulations and observe evolution in action over hours instead of thousands of years. The game promotes hands-off experimentation, allowing users to tweak parameters and witness creatures adapting to their created environments.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

Reviews

84%

Audience ScoreBased on 168 reviews

story1 positive mentions

optimization4 negative mentions

Incredible evolution simulation with unlimited possibilities and depth, allowing for complex behaviors to emerge over time.
Great for those interested in artificial life and evolution, providing a unique experience of watching life develop and adapt.
Very affordable for the level of detail and control it offers, making it a worthwhile investment for simulation fans.

Poorly optimized and written in Java, leading to significant performance issues and long wait times for meaningful evolution to occur.
The user interface is clunky and unintuitive, making it difficult for players to navigate and understand the simulation mechanics.
Lacks clear instructions or a tutorial, which can leave players confused about how to effectively engage with the simulation.

graphics
13 mentions
31 % positive mentions
38 % neutral mentions
31 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are generally described as minimalist and simple, often criticized for being low-quality and lacking detail. While some players appreciate the game's unique charm and find it enjoyable despite its graphical shortcomings, others feel that improved visuals and a better user interface would significantly enhance the experience. Overall, the graphics are a divisive aspect, with opinions ranging from indifference to outright disappointment.
- “Minimalist graphics and generally slow-paced, but if you can get past that, it's one of the most detailed and 'real' evolution sims you can play.”
- “Normally I enjoy graphically beautiful, rich open-world exploring games, but this is a beautiful one to have in the background while I do all my boring day-to-day admin. I keep coming back to see what's happened in my little biome.”
- “Really nice graphics.”
- “I am very much into artificial intelligence and evolution, and I must say, despite the very crappy graphics.”
- “Terrible framerates despite pixel graphics, deeply flawed and clunky user interface, and all this for basically a petri dish simulator.”
- “Very simple pixel graphics.”
gameplay
12 mentions
25 % positive mentions
50 % neutral mentions
25 % negative mentions
The gameplay is characterized as simplistic and slow-paced, often lacking engaging mechanics, with many users noting a frustratingly clunky interface and minimal visual appeal. While some find the concept intriguing, particularly in its educational aspects related to evolution, the overall experience is marred by long wait times and insufficient explanations, leading to a sense of stagnation during play.
- “I can see why since it looks so simple, yet infinite gameplay is what you get when you play Gridworld.”
- “Interesting, fun for its genre type, but slow pace and simplistic gameplay for the complexity of the game.”
- “Thus, the gameplay consists mostly of messing with world settings and waiting to see how this will affect the creatures that have evolved in it.”
- “It's also important to note that this is not a game or offer any kind of gameplay, and it's absolutely hideous to look at, making it very unappealing.”
- “Cons: very simple gameplay and visuals, slow to start, with creatures taking a long time for a viable one to appear.”
- “Great idea, but clunky UI and slow/unreliable gameplay make this simulation unplayable.”
optimization
7 mentions
43 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
57 % negative mentions
The game's optimization has received significant criticism, primarily due to its Java-based development, which leads to poor performance and long loading times. Players report frustratingly low frame rates and noticeable lag, even on capable hardware, detracting from the overall experience. While the game itself is enjoyable, the optimization issues are a major drawback for many users.
- “Great game! I love it! I'm the guy who likes these; I've collected literally all evolution games I can find since there aren't many. This one is amazing; it has that flair, and although I literally have zero idea what's going on, I'm slowly learning. I just had my first successful species; I call them beavers since they look like them and work together like beavers making chains. The beauty of it is letting them learn.”
- “Awesome sim! The performance is a bit of a letdown, but if you're a Darwin fan, you might still enjoy it despite the frame rate issues.”
- “You should try it out if you are a Darwin fan and ironically don't care about performance.”
- “Unfortunately, it's written in Java and badly optimized, so exploring even basic possibilities will take hours or days, when a well-written simulation in a lower-level language would take seconds. Thumbs down for Java.”
- “Awesome sim, but the performance is horrible; a good PC runs it at 40 fps, wtf?”
- “Actually, the performance of this 'simulator' is so poor that there is a lag in the mouse click of at least one whole second.”
music
2 mentions
0 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
100 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received mixed feedback, with some players finding it relaxing and soothing, while others consider it to be of poor quality or forgettable. Overall, it seems to evoke a range of emotions, from calmness to disappointment.
- “The music is bad, if there is any at all. I haven't played since early 2015.”
- “I relaxed for 5 minutes listening to this music, long enough to realize that I would be okay.”
story
1 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The story conveys a powerful message about resilience and the unpredictability of life, emphasizing that perseverance in the face of adversity can lead to unexpected and rewarding outcomes.
- “The moral of the story is that you never know what life has in store for you. If I had given up when all odds were against me, I wouldn't be where I am today.”
replayability
1 mentions
0 % positive mentions
-200 % neutral mentions
300 % negative mentions
Users suggest that the game's replayability could significantly improve with a complete revamp of the user interface, indicating that current UI limitations hinder the overall experience.
- “The game lacks meaningful choices, making replaying it feel pointless.”
- “Once you've completed the main story, there's little incentive to go back.”
- “The limited variety in gameplay mechanics means that replaying feels more like a chore than a fun experience.”