Like EXAPUNKS, but you build the processor too
EXAPUNKS is an open-ended programming puzzle game by Zachtronics, released on Steam on October 22, 2018 for Windows, macOS and Linux. Set in a fictional 1997, it has you write programs for EXAs (execution agents) that tear through networks, replicate themselves and trash files, learning from the in-game hacker zine TRASH WORLD NEWS. You can battle friends' programs head to head and build and share your own puzzles on the Steam Workshop. If that is what brought you here, digiwleea is a free, in-browser alternative with a different angle: you build a computer from the transistor up.
What EXAPUNKS is good at
Like the other Zachtronics games, it is an open-ended puzzle game for people who enjoy programming: agents that copy themselves and work together across a network, zines that teach the craft, and battles where, as the store page puts it, you make every cycle count. (digiwleea is an independent project, not affiliated with Zachtronics.)
How digiwleea is different
EXAPUNKS gives you a fictional machine to program from the outside. digiwleea has you build a real one: in your browser you start from CMOS transistors and wire gates, adders, an ALU, registers, RAM and control logic into an 8-bit CPU, following a guided 40+ level course with an AI tutor (Wleea). Then you program it in assembly (LOAD, ADD, SUB, STORE, JMP, JZ, OUT, HALT) and watch each instruction run through the circuit you wired. The lab and the first act are free. EXAPUNKS is the better pick for hard, story-driven programming puzzles; digiwleea is the better pick for learning how a processor executes instructions. For more of the Zachtronics style, see the TIS-100 and SHENZHEN I/O comparisons.
| EXAPUNKS | digiwleea | |
|---|---|---|
| You program | EXAs moving through fictional networks | The CPU you built |
| The hardware | Fixed by the game | Built by you, from transistors up |
| Extras | Head-to-head battles, Steam Workshop puzzles | Theory lessons, live circuit pages |
| Runs in | A downloaded game (Windows, macOS, Linux) | The browser, nothing to install |
| Price | Paid (Steam) | Free lab and Act I; Premium for the full course |
| AI tutor | No | Yes (Wleea) |
No sign-up is needed to start: open the lab and place your first transistor, or read the free theory course. The account (and the AI tutor) are optional.
See for yourself: build a logic gate from transistors in the simulator, then follow the path from sand to an 8-bit CPU.
Open the digiwleea lab →Frequently asked
Is digiwleea a good EXAPUNKS alternative?
Yes, if you want to understand digital logic from the ground up. digiwleea is a free, in-browser simulator with a guided 40+ level course where you build every gate from CMOS transistors and work up to a real 8-bit CPU, with an AI tutor to help.
Is digiwleea free?
The sandbox lab and the first act of the course are free and need no sign-up. An optional account adds the AI tutor and cross-device sync; the full course and expanded AI tutoring are included in the monthly or annual Premium subscription.
Do I need to install anything?
No. digiwleea runs entirely in your browser, on desktop or mobile, and works offline once loaded.