THE CONNECTOME ARCADE

166,700 neurons, and no idea you are watching

Every game below is driven by a live fruit-fly brain simulation running on a server in Newcastle. Nothing is scripted: the ball, the threats and the escapes come from spikes in its visual system and giant fibre. One visitor at a time, because there is exactly one brain.

00
Reflex Duel
A projectile, a looming shadow, one keypress. Your reaction time against a 60-millisecond circuit. The original.
human vs fly
01
Pong
Its paddle does not glide — it twitches, in 40-degree giant-fibre jumps. First to 7.
beat it if you can
02
The Swatter
You hunt it with the cursor. Every time the looming shadow crosses the threshold it escapes by its own reflex, not by luck.
lose an hour
03
Survival Arena
Two lanes, one rock. You pick a lane with the arrow keys; the fly picks one with its giant fibre. Same rock, same second, different wiring.
you will lose first
04
Lesion Lab
Cut neurons out of the running brain, one class at a time, and run the same threat again. Find the smallest cut that kills the escape.
brain surgery, live
05
Blind Side
Is the escape circuit crossed? Cut one wing and threaten from each side. The answer is the connectome's, not mine.
an experiment
06
Read the Brain
A looming stimulus is coming. Which giant fibre fires first, and when? Bet before it happens.
prediction
07
Penalties
Ten shots. It dives wherever its giant fibre says — a real spike decides whether your corner is saved.
crowd-pleaser
08
Copycat
It escapes. You repeat the exact turn, faster every round, until you cannot.
gets quick
09
Sprint
You are one looming detector racing DNp01. The stimulus gets weaker every round; you will not keep up.
you vs one neuron
10
Derby
Two bodies, one brain. Body A obeys the left wing, body B the right. Lesion a wing and watch them diverge.
two bodies