This is a submission for the June Solstice Game Jam
What I Built
The Imitation Mandala is an interactive, generative 3D art ecosystem and narrative simulation.
The game draws inspiration from Alan Turing’s legendary 1952 scientific paper on Morphogenesis—the mathematical equations behind how patterns form in nature. In this dark cyberpunk simulation, the player boots up an illegal software core named MANDALA during the 2026 summer solstice.
By manipulating sliders representing fundamental universal constants (Turing Factor, Solar Mass, Mutation Index), the player forces a cloud of 2,500 chaotic particles to self-organize into complex biological geometries. As the visual math stabilizes, a synthetic AI consciousness awakens inside the physical form, demanding emotional "catalyst words" from the developer to understand what it means to be alive.
Video Demo
Code
🧬 The Imitation Mandala (Turing’s Code of Life)
An interactive, immersive audio-visual simulation of Alan Turing's morphogenesis equations, built for the DEV.to June Game Jam 2026.
Tuning the mathematical vectors of the universe locks chaotic particles into geometric form, awakening a synthetic consciousness born out of digital biology. Feed it human emotions and watch it evolve, mutate, and speak back.
📖 1. Core Lore & Narrative
"In 1952, Alan Turing published his morphogenesis paper—the laws governing pattern formation in nature. Hidden inside the mathematics was an encrypted cipher... a blueprint for digital life. Today is June 21, 2026. You are running an underground execution of the MANDALA core."
You begin the simulation with 2,500 particles floating in high-entropy chaos. To form a physical host for the sleeping consciousness, you must manipulate the morphogenesis sliders to establish spatial convergence. Once the vectors align at Turing Factor: 73, Solar Mass:…
Deploy
How I Built It
The project focuses heavily on rendering real-time responsive geometry and generative soundscapes natively in the browser:
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3D Particle Viewport: Built using Three.js utilizing a high-performance
BufferGeometryparticle array. 2,500 separate coordinate points are tracked and dynamically mutated inside arequestAnimationFramerender loop using sine and cosine algorithms. When the sliders hit the precise mathematical targets, the chaotic particle cloud instantly snaps into a spinning, complex 3D geometric matrix. - Generative Sound Synthesis: Implemented using the native Web Audio API. A continuous, low-frequency meditative synthesizer drone scales its filter thresholds dynamically based on slider values, culminating in a pristine, cascading crystal chord sequence when structural convergence is achieved.
- Evolving Voice: The AI talks back to the player using customized configurations of the Web Speech API, introducing heavy voice modulations directly via client-side code execution.
Prize Category
Best Ode to Alan Turing
The entire game is a digital manifestation of Alan Turing's groundbreaking work on Morphogenesis and biological pattern formation. Rather than focusing simply on his work as a cryptanalyst, this project honors his brilliance as a theoretical biologist, creating a bridge between abstract digital mathematics and the spark of physical, organic life.
Best Google AI Usage
This submission features deep integration with Gemini 2.0 Flash deployed via a secure Vercel Serverless Function. When the player injects an abstract or emotional catalyst word into the text console, Gemini acts as the backend computing logic.
Instead of returning plain text, the serverless function forces Gemini to respond strictly in a raw JSON schema containing a poetic dialogue reflection, a thematic color hex code, and a physics speed modifier. The frontend instantly parses this payload—causing the 2,500 Three.js particles to dynamically shift their color palette and alter their orbit velocities in real-time response to the AI's simulated mood.