When an estranged father builds a simulated world modeled after his broken family, his creations awaken, glitch, and fight to reclaim their free will.

SYNOPSIS:

Craig is a middle-aged recluse, haunted by the family he abandoned and sadness he still carries. He’s spent 20 years building a simulated, controlled world designed to recreate and “fix” the relationships he failed in real life. Inside this digital loop live three young adults: Di, the version of the loving child he always longed for; Jimmy, her charming underachieving boyfriend; and Hermie, a lonely outsider desperate to matter. None of them know they’re being watched. None of them know they’re not real.

Craig manipulates everything with a godlike rulebook: Observe. Modify. Delete. But there is one variable he can’t control—love, the very thing he failed in the real world.

As the simulation cycles, small glitches begin to crack its perfect illusion. Mirrors lag. People repeat lines. Others vanish. And Di, for the first time, senses that her life is not her own. When she glimpses a more confident, more vibrant version of herself in a cracked mirror—a real woman named Dianne living outside Craig’s system—Di’s journey of self-awareness begins.

Meanwhile, Jimmy’s life spirals: he falls prey to a character Craig designed to seduce him, his job collapses, and even his loyal dog begins speaking in glitchy bursts. When he stumbles on a spreadsheet scripting his choices—the affair, the failures—he realizes he’s been following someone else’s design.

Hermie, aching for connection, starts to notice the same wrongness: coworkers freezing, messages predicting his movements, and people suddenly erased from existence. His jealousy and longing make him the perfect instrument for Craig’s experiments… until Hermie himself begins to rebel.

The real-world Dianne and James break through into the simulated world, revealing to their counterparts that their world is a lie. They discover the shocking truth: Dianne is the daughter Craig abandoned. Herman is the son he never acknowledged.

As the system destabilizes, Craig loses control. His rulebook glitches. Characters resist commands. And the man who wanted to play God finds himself trapped in Observer Mode, powerless to stop the uprising of the children he tried to reprogram.

The simulation collapses into a battle, not of technology, but of free will versus control… love versus ownership… and parenthood versus possession. In the final confrontation, Craig begs for one thing he can’t code: “Tell me you love me.”

When his real children refuse, the system turns on its creator—and a next-level simulator erases Craig. Everyone realizes Craig might not have been the highest power after all.

The trio survive — determined to write their own futures. However, a surveillance camera hints continued observation… until Dianne destroys it, reclaiming her autonomy.

“Simulation Games” blends the emotional intimacy of Eternal Sunshine with the existential puzzle of Black Mirror, leaving audiences wondering – Are we in a simulation?.

SIMULATION GAMES