Salty: Evolution Simulator

Salty puts you at the eyepiece of a microscope, looking down at a single prokaryote adrift in saltwater. No nucleus. No defenses. No idea what's coming.

This game was developed from the idea to create something the gamer can enjoy the randomness of life while learning something real about cellular biology. We pride ourselves on delivering a research-based game on each creature that is true to their behaviors in the wild and how they may interact with each other. Much of this game is to be as much interacting with nature but can also be very entertaining observing the mysterious world of microbiology.

A gentle guided tutorial teaches you to swim, hunt, and build your first organelle — then quietly gets out of your way. We have observed that a few new players to PC games have struggled with standard controls, so we created a robust tutorial system for those just starting out or disable it entirely when needed.

Gather lipids, proteins, and fiber from the water around you, then spend them in the crafting ring to assemble real organelles — nucleus pores, ribosomes, mitochondria, Golgi bodies, lysosomes, endoplasmic reticulum. Each one you build genuinely changes what your organism can do, exactly as it does in a living cell.

Your progression is the biology: stack ribosomes to synthesize protein faster, grow a flagellum to dash, reinforce your membrane to survive rougher waters.

You are not alone in the water. Aggressive viruses hunt for cells to hijack. Larger organisms will run you down and consume you.

Fight back with real cellular weapons: engulf prey with phagocytosis, release an endotoxin burst to dissolve attackers, stun armored prey before striking, and dash out of danger with your flagellum. Learn what's dangerous. Grow strong enough to stop being prey.

Many more attack and defensive abilities are currently being worked on to increase the game engagement level. This is where we really need your feedback in our comments or to send a bug report in the game menu while trying out the demo.

Every species you meet is a real microorganism, recorded in your Compendium with its actual biology — what it eats, what it drops, and a page of true facts about the living creature. Discovery unlocks new DNA. New DNA unlocks new complexity. This game has advanced terminology and concepts that could lead to a narrow audience, but would be a nice bridge for those home-schooled teenagers and beyond to break up the monotony of textbook learning.

No quizzes, no lectures — getting good at Salty simply is understanding how cells work. The pop-up learning for discoveries is also an easy toggle switch in the game menu if your goal is to just play the game. All learning and tutorial systems have full voice-over for those that enjoy the audio learning focus.

From Garrack Gaming Studios — we build simulation games where the systems do the storytelling. Salty is our first, and the demo is free.

► Wishlist Salty to be notified the moment it launches, and play the free demo.