The Game of Life is not your typical computer game. It is a cellular automaton, and was invented by Cambridge mathematician John Conway.

This game became widely known when it was mentioned in an article published by Scientific American in 1970. It consists of a collection of cells which, based on a few mathematical rules, can live, die or multiply. Depending on the initial conditions, the cells form various patterns throughout the course of the game.

Rules

• Life - The Game. Ohmaigawd 3.9 820,534 votes. Life: The Game on Poki is the best way to experience an entire journey, from birth to death, in game form! From study dates to actual dates, play Life: The Game and see if your life is delightful or disastrous. This Life game features different minigames for each stage of your life.
• This is an implementation of Conway's Game of Life or more precisely, the super-fast Hashlife algorithm, written in JavaScript using the canvas -tag. It can simulate the largest known patterns, including the Tetris Processor (0.1MB, 29201m cells), Caterpillar (2.5MB, 11m cells), Gemini (1.4MB, 846k cells), Turing Machine (0.1MB, 252k cells).
• Buy The Game of Life by Hasbro for PlayStation at GameStop. Find release dates, customer reviews, previews, and more.

The Game of Life 2 on PC is a family board game where you play the Hasbro’s classic family game sequel on mobile! Now you can win at growing up! This digital board gaming app is offered by Marmalade Game Studios and will be available on both Android and iOS devices. The Game of Life features a new, unique and much-anticipated multiplayer mode. Online matchmaking lets you play in a whole new way online. Match and play against other online players as you all spin and race in the direction of the last yellow tile of life’s road.

Each cell with one or no neighbors dies, as if by solitude.

Each cell with four or more neighbors dies, as if by overpopulation.

Each cell with two or three neighbors survives.

Each cell with three neighbors becomes populated.

The Controls

Choose a pattern from the lexicon or make one yourself by clicking on the cells. The 'Start' button advances the game by several generations (each new generation corresponding to one iteration of the rules).

More information

In the first video, from Stephen Hawkings’ documentary The Meaning of Life, the rules are explained, in the second, John Conway himself talks about the Game of Life.

The Guardian published a nice article about John Conway.

If you’ve been thinking “I’d like to sell my Tesla,” check out FindMyElectric.com—the ultimate Tesla marketplace, and one of Game of Life’s supporters!

The Game of Life is also supported by Dotcom-Tools, Load View Testing, Driven Coffee Roasters, and Web Hosting Buddy.

Implemented by Edwin Martin <edwin@bitstorm.org>

“You will learn about life when you play The Game of Life” went the original television advertising jingle for Milton Bradley’s Game of Life. Milton Bradley himself, the founder of the company, printed and sold a game called The Checkered Game of Life in 1860. As 1960 approached, the Milton Bradley Company enlisted independent inventor Reuben Klamer to come up with a game that would commemorate the firm’s 100th anniversary. Klamer took the “Life” name from the 1860 predecessor but created a completely new game for a new era. The Game of Life charted fresh territory for board games with its three-dimensional board and its integral plastic spinner. To promote the game, the Milton Bradley Company hired popular radio and television personality Art Linkletter to add his “personal endorsement.” Since then, the game has been updated several times and both electronic and specially-themed versions are now widely available. One of the best-selling games of all time, Life has also been translated into at least 20 languages.

The Game Of Life Online Conway

Playing The Game of Life parallels a person’s life in several ways. Players must choose between “college” and “business” early in the game. Payday comes sooner for the businessperson, but college may mean higher paychecks in the end. Marriage and children usually occur during the game. Players in 1960 could end up in the Poor Farm or land happily in Millionaire Acres. The 2010 version offers everyone more comfortable destinations, sending players to either Countryside Acres or Millionaire Estates. In any event, chance and luck play the largest part in the journey. The game has been criticized over the years for being based solely on luck and for rewarding risk-taking, but Life has stood the test of time—and family game night would not be as much fun without it.