Lifeforce
Two players place cells, then Conway's Game of Life decides who survives. Free to play in your browser on desktop or mobile, no sign-up.
Lifeforce is a two-player strategy game built on Conway's Game of Life. You and a friend take turns placing living cells on a shared grid, then the simulation runs and the colony with the most cells at the end wins. It plays in your browser on one screen, with no account and nothing to install.
How to play
- Enter both player names, then choose a grid size and a look for the board. The size sets how many cells each player gets to place: 16 on the small grid, 24 on medium, 32 on large and 40 on extra large.
- Take turns placing cells with a click or tap. Press Done to hand the turn over. You cannot place a cell on top of, or directly beside, an opponent's cell, so the two colonies start apart; the board shades the squares that are off limits.
- Made a mistake? Switch to erase mode (press
E, or use the draw/erase button) to take back a cell of your own. PressDorBto go back to drawing. - When you are both happy, press Battle. After a short countdown the cells start to live and die on their own.
The rules the cells follow are Conway's: a live cell with two or three live neighbours survives, any other live cell dies, and an empty space with exactly three live neighbours comes to life. In Lifeforce a newborn cell takes the colour of the majority of its parents, which is how one colony eats into the other.
The battle ends when one colony is wiped out, when the board settles into a stable pattern, or after 1,000 generations. Switch on unlimited generations before you start if you want it to run until it settles. Press F, or the speed button, to watch it at 2× or 4×. The player with more cells left wins.
Then the whole battle rises as a sculpture of time: every generation is a layer, from the cells you placed at the bottom to the final board on top. A still pattern becomes a pillar, a glider a staircase, and the moment one colony took over the other a change of colour up a column. Drag to turn it, and use the timeline under it to replay the battle a generation at a time, as the sculpture or on the flat board. Save image keeps a picture of it.
On a big grid, zoom with the mouse wheel, + and -, or pinch on a touch screen. Press H for navigate mode, or hold Space, to drag the board around, and 0 fits it to the window. Press ? for the full list of shortcuts. A 3D board view is available from the controls.
Strategy
- Small, tight clusters usually survive better than a long, thin line. Plenty of two- and three-neighbour contact keeps your cells alive.
- Patterns that glide, such as a glider, are good at reaching the other colony. A block or beehive will sit safely where you put it.
- Cells of yours placed close to the opponent's start fights early, while cells kept back can wait for the battle to come to you.
- Remember that you cannot erase after pressing Battle. Think about what your pattern will turn into over the first few generations before you commit.
Questions
Is Lifeforce free? Yes. It is free to play in the browser, with no sign-up.
Can I play it on my own? It is built for two players taking turns on the same device. There is no computer opponent.
Can I play it on my phone? Yes. The board supports tapping and pinch-to-zoom, though a larger grid is easier on a tablet or computer.
Lifeforce
Two colonies, one board. Conway's rules decide who lives.
- SeedTake turns placing 16 cells each. You can't place next to your rival's cells; the shaded squares show where.
- LiveEach generation, a cell with two or three neighbours survives. An empty square with exactly three comes alive, in the colour most of its parents share.
- RiseWhen the board settles, the bigger colony wins, and the whole battle rises as a sculpture you can turn and replay.