Links to science games, simulations, and collections. Have fun!
If any links are broken, let me know.
If the Moon Were Only 1 Pixel
A to-scale model of the solar system in a browser window. Created by Josh Worth.
The Falstad Collection
Collection of small simulations created by Falstad.
Sandboxels
A simulation of falling sand and so much more, a surprising amount of physics built into this toy. Created by the R74n Collective.
Particulars
Particle Physics game for PC where you control a down quark through level after level of puzzles that require you to avoid, attract, and repel other Standard Model particles. Created by SeeThrough Studios.
Falstad Gas
Particles bouncing around in a box, with lots of options for changing the setup. Includes thermodynamic quantities, too. Built by Falstad.
goREACT
A periodic table where you can drag various elements around, and see which ones interact with which. Created by the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago.
Gravity Simulator – Huffman
Very cool 3D astronomical simulations, running right in the browser. Created by Darrell Huffman.
Physion
Build tons of 2D physics simulations with this free resource. Easy to check out, tons of cool stuff you can do with it. Created by Dimitris Xanthopoulos.
Sokobond Express
Puzzle game where you move and bond atoms into molecules by dragging them along particular paths. Created by Draknek & Friends.
Fe[26]
A variant of the game 2048, where the tiles are fusing elements in a star. Created by Dimitar Dimitrov.
Wavemaker
A game about making waves, literally, and doing your best to match various patterns. Created by Universe & More.
Gravity with Poisson Equation
Cool look at gravity of many, many bodies, calculated on a mesh. Looks neat, too. Created by Ricky Reusser.
Metaflora
Like Wordle for plants – learn about the wild world of plant classifications. Created by Trainwreck Labs.
Index of Simulations
A spreadsheet pulled together for teachers of a categorized list of hundreds (wait, thousands!) of simulations you can find online, sorted by topic. An incredible resource organized by Helen Reynolds.
The Hunt for Dark Matter
Explore how Gravitational Lensing can be used to find Dark Matter. And as a bonus there’s a game at the end! Created by Shaun Hotchkiss.
Polarity Shift
Nice simple game about electrical attraction and repulsion – and hitting a target. Created by Universe & More.
Black Hole Launcher
A simulation of the spacetime around a Schwarzschild black hole where you can fling astroids and light to your heart’s content. Created by TestTubeGames.
Gravity
A simple gravity simulator for the web. Created by Hermann.
Chaotic Pendulum
A customizable toy of a double pendulum. Created by MinuteLabs.
Gravity Simulator – TestTubeGames
Fling planets and change physics in this gravity sandbox. Available in browser and for download. Created by TestTubeGames.
Niche
A strategy game that revolves around genetics and evolution. Created by Stray Fawn Studio.
Virus, the Beauty of the Beast
An interactive video that lets you explore the math and patterns of virus structures. Created by Hamish Todd.
Velocity Raptor
A special relativistic game where a dinosaur travels near the speed of light. Created by TestTubeGames.
Ricky Reusser Collection
A lot of cool interactive math-y explorables to check out. Created by Ricky Reusser.
Metazooa
Like Wordle for animals, but instead of matching letters and words, you’re matching various orders/families/clades of animal classification. Created by Trainwreck Labs.
Crack the Circuit
Great game about recreating circuits based on a mystery setup. Good for testing knowledge about circuits. Created by Universe & More.
JavaLab
Just an amazing trove of science simulations built by middle school teacher, DJ Lee. I’m amazed at how much is covered here.
The Physics Classroom
Sets of pages with lessons and interactives about a variety of physics topics.
Emoji Simulator
Basically lets you recreate The Game of Life, but with emoji and any rules you’d like to put in. Created by Nicky Case.
Loopy
Investigate systems that interact, such as the predator-prey population dynamics and much, much more. Created by Nicky Case.
Why do Astronauts Float?
A playful look at the science behind ‘floating’ in space. Created by TestTubeGames.
The Electric Shocktopus
Electromagnetic game where your character can charge themselves to move around the levels. Created by TestTubeGames.
Black Hole Explorer
Explore the spacetime around a black hole in your rocket ship. Created by TestTubeGames.
The Fittest 2
Crawling stick figure creatures evolve before your eyes. Created by TestTubeGames.
Swing Explorer
A simulated swing, with some tools for exploring the physics behind pumping your legs. Created by TestTubeGames.
Concord Consortium List
A collection of science interactives by Concord Consortium.
Earth Primer
An interactive book about geology and earth science, available for iPad and Mac. Created by Chaim Gingold.
A Slower Speed of Light
Explore the optical effects of special relativity in a 3D setting. Created by MIT Game Lab.
Bond Breaker 2.0
Explore the atomic realm in this game about molecular bonds. Created by TestTubeGames.
ScienceGameCenter
THE definitive list of science games – both digital and physical. Curated by Dr. Melanie Stegman.
Periodic Three-Body Orbits
A nice interactive look at three-body orbits that repeat. Created by Ricky Reusser.
HyperRogue
A roguelike game set on a hyperbolic plane. Easier played than understood, I’d say. Created by Zeno Rogue Games.
PhET
The definitive collection of free online resources for physics classes. Run by University of Colorado Boulder.
Kerr Spherical Photon Orbits
An explorable explanation of the orbits around a spinning black hole. Created by Dr. Leo Stein.
Google Doodle CuPd
Fun google doodle where you match atomic elements up on dates, and their level of ‘attraction’ is based on the atomic attraction those elements would feel.
PhyPhox
Turn your phone into a physics lab. Graph things like acceleration, pressure, and magnetic field. Very powerful stuff. Created by RWTH Aachen University.
Circuit Construction Kit
Nice tool for easily creating and testing simple circuits, built by PhET.
Particle Clicker
A humorous idle game about particle colliders and the physics process. Created by Biro, Babuschkin, Dungs, Novak, and Zhang.
Crescent Loom
A nervous system simulation game, where you build brains to control creatures. Created by Olive.
Eclipse Explorer
Simulate solar eclipses, even on other planets and with other moons. Created by MinuteLabs.
Quantum Game
A game that explores quantum mechanics, with an emphasis on quantum computing. Created by Quantum Flytrap.
4D Golf
Minigolf, but in 4 Dimensions of space. Very confusing, but very well done. Made for PC, and created by CodeParade.
Kerbal Space Program
Most games aren’t rocket science, but this one is. Created by Squad.
Universe Sandbox
Downloadable space simulation that lets you smash planets together in a really cool way. Created by Giant Army.
Explorable Explanations
A collection of Explorable Explanations curated by Nicky Case.
Black Hole Hunter
Investigate the gravitational wave signals from colliding black holes. Created by Cardiff University.
Universe & More
A collection of interactive physics resources that are fun and easy to use. By Matthew Blackman.
Ripple Tank Simulation
Simulation for investigating waves and interference, with a bunch of customizable physics options. Created by Falstad.
Schwarzschild Trajectories
A slick simulation of particles flying around a black hole. Created by Ricky Reusser.