How many things can you make?

98 main discoveries, plus a few secret combinations for things that only make sense on the internet.

Is my progress saved?

Yes. Your discoveries are saved in your browser, so you can come back later and carry on.

Is this like Infinite Craft or Little Alchemy?

Same basic idea: put two things together, get a third. The difference here is that every result is a real step in the history of the universe, with a fact and a date, so you end up rebuilding history roughly in order.

Did oil really come from dinosaurs?

No. Most oil formed from tiny marine plankton and algae buried in sediment for millions of years, which is why the game makes it from sand and life.

From Scratch: Combine Elements and Rebuild 13.8 Billion Years of History

From Scratch

Start with hydrogen. Make the internet. Back to the game

How to play

Drag one item onto another to combine them, or on a phone tap one and then the other. If they make something new, you discover it and it is written onto your index card and pinned to the timeline at the top. Tap anything on your index card to put a copy on the page, and double-click a chip to duplicate it. Faded entries on the card have nothing left to make. Stuck? The hint button draws an arrow to a good place to start.

Why does it start with hydrogen?

Because the universe did. In the first few minutes after the Big Bang, almost all ordinary matter was hydrogen with some helium. Every heavier element came later, made inside stars. Stars fuse hydrogen into helium, then helium into carbon and oxygen, and the biggest stars go on to make silicon and iron. When a giant star’s iron core collapses, it explodes as a supernova and scatters those elements into space, where they become new stars, planets and, eventually, people. The carbon in your body and the oxygen you breathe were made in stars that died before the Sun was born.

Is the timeline accurate?

Each discovery is placed at the time it first appeared, from the first stars about 13.6 billion years ago to the phone. The ribbon is split into four chapters: space, the early Earth, life and people. Each chapter has its own logarithmic scale, because otherwise everything since the dinosaurs would be squeezed into the last hair’s width. Things made by people are dated by calendar year. The combinations are simplified (a star doesn’t literally need “iron plus gravity” to explode), but each one points at the real process.

Questions people ask

How many things can you make?: 98 main discoveries, plus a few secret combinations for things that only make sense on the internet.
Is my progress saved?: Yes. Your discoveries are saved in your browser, so you can come back later and carry on.
Is this like Infinite Craft or Little Alchemy?: Same basic idea: put two things together, get a third. The difference here is that every result is a real step in the history of the universe, with a fact and a date, so you end up rebuilding history roughly in order.
Did oil really come from dinosaurs?: No. Most oil formed from tiny marine plankton and algae buried in sediment for millions of years, which is why the game makes it from sand and life.