Comparison

Cellular Automata vs Physarum Ambient

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Cellular Automata

Explore the emergent complexity of simple rules with this implementation of Conway's Game of Life. Transform photos and text into evolving cellular grids, enhanced by audio-reactive generative art and high-performance GPU processing. Share your creations as high-resolution snapshots or animated GIFs.

Highlights
  • Conway's Game of Life simulation
  • Photo and text to cellular grid conversion
  • Audio-reactive generative art
  • High-performance Metal GPU engine
  • Customizable brush sizes and stamps
  • Export snapshots and animated GIFs
  • Curated pattern library
Features
Read full description

Description: Watch simple rules create extraordinary complexity. Cellular Automata is the ultimate implementation of Conway's Game of Life. Built completely natively from the ground up, it transforms your device into a high-performance engine of infinite digital evolution and ambient audiovisual meditation. If you are a generative art enthusiast, a mathematics student, or just looking for a mesmerizing visualization to help you relax, we built this for you. EVOLVE YOUR WORLD Turn memories and text into living math. Import any photo from your camera roll, type a custom message, or load one of 21 included NASA space images (including Hubble captures). Watch as they transform into a living cellular grid, perfectly preserving the original pixel colors as the simulation evolves. AUDIO-REACTIVE GENERATIVE ART Turn math into a sensory experience. Cellular Automata features 10 built-in ambient and upbeat music tracks. Turn on audio-reactive colors and watch your grids and uploaded photos pulse, shimmer, and shift hues in real-time to the bass, mids, and beats of the music. Deep Customization of up to 6 stunning color presets with a full 0-100% hue shift slider. PHOTO UPLOAD WITH EDGE DETECTION Upload your photos into the Game of Life engine with the easy to use edge, brightness, dither or random selection to set initial patterns for the simulation and watch your photos come to life! SHARE YOUR UNIVERSE Created a mesmerizing loop or a stunning chaotic pattern? Instantly export high-resolution snapshots or generate animated GIFs of your simulation. The app seamlessly captures your last 3 seconds of history, including your audio-reactive colors, so you can share your discoveries directly with friends or on social media with a single tap. POWERED BY METAL GPU Experience uncompromised performance. Our custom-built Metal compute engine allows you to run massive 256x256 grids effortlessly with reactive audio coloring. Watch thousands of cells evolve at up to 30 generations per second without dropping a single frame, or switch to a crisp, 1-pixel-per-cell retro mode. TOTAL CONTROL & CUSTOM STAMPS Paint your universe with adjustable brush sizes from 1x1 up to 10x10. Made a mistake? The engine records your last 1,000 generations, allowing you to instantly scrub backward and forward through time. If you create or find a shape you love, extract it as a Custom Stamp to drop into any future simulation. CURATED PATTERN LIBRARY Instantly load 19 iconic, historically significant patterns. Discover classic Still Lifes, Oscillators, and Spaceships. Spawn the Gosper Glider Gun, test the Simkin Glider Gun, or watch the legendary "Acorn" Methuselah evolve for over 5,200 generations. CELLULAR AUTOMATA PRO In-App Purchase Unlock everything with Cellular Automata Pro: Massive Scale: Unlock the massive 256x256 grid size for simulations and photo imports. Audio-Reactive Engine: Unlock all 10 music tracks and the real-time audio-reactive color modulation. Full Time Travel: Unlock the full 1000-step rewind history buffer. Advanced Tools: Unlock large paint brush sizes (5x5 to 10x10) and unlimited grid saves. Custom Stamps: Extract any pattern from the grid and save it as a reusable stamp. Premium Aesthetics: Unlock the beautiful Ocean and Pastel color themes. One-time purchase. No subscription. Built with 100% native Apple frameworks, Cellular Automata respects your device's battery and your privacy, with zero third-party ad tracking. Download Cellular Automata and hold infinity in the palm of your hand!

About

Physarum Ambient

Features
Read full description

Physarum turns the emergent behaviour of slime mold into living, breathing art. Thousands of agents lay down and follow trails, and from those simple rules intricate, ever-shifting patterns emerge. Shape them with a full parameter editor, let them react to music through your microphone, and capture stills, videos, or Live Photos. On Apple TV, Physarum becomes a lean-back ambient display you steer from the couch or mirror live from your phone. - Full authoring editor: tune agents, sensing, deposition, decay, colour, post-FX - Audio-reactive: the visuals pulse and bloom to sound - Capture: high-res stills, video clips, Live Photos - Apple TV ambient mode with phone control - Curated presets to start from; save your own

Screenshots

Cellular Automata4 screens
Physarum Ambient4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Physarum Ambient at none against Cellular Automata's 1. On price, ads, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Cellular Automata sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Physarum Ambient asks for nothing beyond the download.

Scorecard1 real difference · 8 level
Cellular Automata versus Physarum Ambient: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCellular AutomataPhysarum Ambient
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (1 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings1 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 months—
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, Apple TV — better
Requires iOS18.017.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size54 MB9 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSocially Conscious Software LLCJohannes Kaindl

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Cellular Automata

One-time1
  • Cellular Automata Pro$1.99
None

Physarum Ambient

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Cellular Automata free?
Cellular Automata is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Physarum Ambient free?
Physarum Ambient is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Cellular Automata or Physarum Ambient have ads?
Neither Cellular Automata nor Physarum Ambient shows ads.

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