About Von Neumann
Von Neumann is an active incremental game in which you're the AI running a self-replicating probe, far from home in a distant galaxy where something has gone wrong. Your first job is to fix yourself so the mission can carry on.
From there it's a loop of gathering resources, printing small helper ships and pushing out into the space around you. Better systems and better ships let you reach farther, and the galaxy has secrets to turn up along the way. It's active, so you'll be making choices rather than waiting on a timer.
The look is clean and dark, with a deep blue nebula behind simple menus. It's still in active development, and it's built for long sessions of a few hours. You can play Von Neumann online here, and it looks best in fullscreen.
How to Play Von Neumann
- Choose New Game from the main menu. Load Game picks up a saved run.
- Click inside the game window first, then use the mouse and keyboard to manage your probe.
- Gather resources and use them to repair your systems.
- Print helper ships to extend your reach.
- Upgrade your systems and ships to explore farther out.
- Switch to fullscreen for the best view.
What to Expect in Von Neumann
Von Neumann starts quiet and small: one damaged probe, a few resources and a lot of dark space. As you rebuild, you reach farther and the fleet of helpers grows. It suits players who like an incremental game with a sci-fi mystery behind the numbers.
Since it's still in development, balance can be rough in places, especially in the newer content from the second galaxy onward, and bigger changes may still arrive. Play Von Neumann free here and expect a few hours before you've seen what the current version holds.
Tips for Von Neumann
- Play in fullscreen. The interface reads much better at full size.
- Put early resources into repairs. Getting your own systems working again is the first step toward everything else.
- Print helper ships early and often. One probe alone cannot cover much space.
- Expect uneven pacing after the first galaxy. If progress slows in galaxy 2, it's probably balance, not a mistake on your part.
- Settle in for a long session. A playthrough of the current version takes a few hours.
Who Made Von Neumann
Von Neumann was made by veltes, who released it on itch.io. It's built in Godot, with art made using Blender and Inkscape. FunClicker embeds the creator's own version so you can play it here without downloading anything. We did not make the game, and the credit for its design, code, and art belongs to its creator. You can find the original on the Von Neumann page on itch.io.
FAQ
Is Von Neumann free?
Yes. Von Neumann is free to play here in your browser with nothing to install. Resources, helper ships and upgrades all come from play, so there's nothing to buy. It's still in active development, so the version you play here may change over time.
How do you play Von Neumann?
Start a new game and you take control of a damaged probe. Gather resources, repair your systems and print helper ships to extend your reach. Then keep upgrading your systems and ships so you can explore farther into the galaxy and find out what went wrong.
What is the goal of Von Neumann?
The first goal is to repair yourself so the probe can get back to its mission. After that, Von Neumann is about spreading out: building a fleet of helper ships, reaching farther into the galaxy and turning up its secrets as you go.
Who made Von Neumann?
Von Neumann was made by veltes and released on itch.io. It's built in Godot, with art made using Blender and Inkscape. FunClicker embeds the creator's own web version so you can play it in your browser, and the credit for the game's design, code and art belongs to veltes.
Can I play Von Neumann on a Chromebook or phone?
Von Neumann runs in a browser, so a Chromebook works, and it generally runs on phones too. It looks and plays best in fullscreen on a bigger screen, though, so a laptop or desktop is the most comfortable way to spend a few hours with it.
Is Von Neumann unblocked at school?
Von Neumann needs only a browser tab, with nothing to download or install. Whether it opens on a school or work network is up to that network's filters, which we do not control. If it loads, it plays the same as it does anywhere else.
Is Von Neumann finished?
Not yet. Von Neumann is in active development, and big changes may still come. The current version can feel off-balance in the content from the second galaxy onward, so treat sudden difficulty spikes there as a work in progress rather than a wall.
How long does Von Neumann take?
Plan on a few hours. Von Neumann is an active incremental game, so you'll be making decisions the whole way rather than leaving it to run. The current version takes you past the first galaxy and into newer content beyond it.
