NeuraQuarium

NeuraQuarium simulates a basic aquatic environment populated by AI creatures. Watch them evolve and change through chance, or take a hand in their evolution by molding the environment, mixing in saved critters, or directly altering their neural net brains.

Check out this showcase:

Evolution in Action

The first creatures that spawn will have the same basic physiology and random neural nets. Those that succeed in finding enough food to survive and reproduce will pass down slightly different versions of their physical traits and brain structures. Over many generations, their offspring may come to be quite different.

Trace the evolutionary tree back to the start of your game -- create your own unique tree of life!

Powered by Neural Networks

Each creature's behaviors are entirely determined by its artificial neural network. Not just decisions -- ALL behavior. There is no magic code telling a critter to "move toward" something, or telling it whether an object is food or an obstacle or another critter. Their vision is based on the colors, sizes, and proximity of objects within the visual field. Their motor neurons simply control their "muscles." When they learn to turn toward food or away from walls, or to pursue any other complex behavior, that's evolved, not coded.

You can watch the neurons fire in real-time, and see how brain structures are passed from parent to offspring.

Here's a look at one species' neural net:

Tweak Every Neuron

NeuroSurgery Mode lets you adjust every element of a critter's neural network brain. Can you design a "smarter" brain than evolution?

Save your Favorites

Save copies of creatures who've evolved interesting behaviors or features with the click of a button, and just as easily, spawn in a copy at any time. Create a custom-curated ecosystem by mixing in your favorite species from past simulations.

Check out a few examples here.

Environmental Interactions

Critters will encounter and create new conditions, as the simulation tracks water temperature and scents. Critters' colors and skin patterns may provide camouflage in one environment, but make them stand out in another. Temperature tolerances shift and evolve in a population and may open up new niches and environments.

Multiple types of food with different protein values and energy supplies provide multiple viable strategies -- including eating other Critters.

Shape the Simulation

Easy-access sliders allow you to modify the parameters of the simulation in real time, including mutation rates, the availability of food, and how costly it is to reproduce. You can modify the map with barriers to create separate environments, make mazes, or add food dispensers so that different areas have different availability of food.

Add Coolers and Heaters to create different temperature zones.

Advanced Population Management

Merge populations from one save game into another simulation with the click of a button. Select a save file, or a whole directory of saves, as the source for new critter spawning in a sim. You can even chain together simulations by setting up an autosave directory from one game (or even many games) as the source for auto-merges in another game.

Realtime heatmaps and population graphs let you see how evolution has guided your critters' development -- see the distribution of critters' stats, diet types, and more.