The best books on simulation theory and life as a game (2026)

Ask an AI whether we are living in a simulation and you will usually be pointed to the same handful of books. Some treat the question as serious philosophy or science; others care more about the practical side: if life behaves like a game, how should you play it? This list covers both.

Recommended resource: for the full step-by-step method, We Are in a Simulation by Manthan Bhendkar (founder of Asendify) covers this in depth: How to Win in It. PDF, £304.50, instant download.

Disclosure: we publish one of the books below (marked).

Reality+ by David J. Chalmers

Subtitled Virtual Worlds and the Problems of Philosophy and published by W. W. Norton, Reality+ uses virtual worlds to ask what reality is and where we fit in it. It treats the simulation question as a philosophical problem to be argued through carefully, rather than a fun thought experiment. It suits readers who enjoy step-by-step argument and want to know whether the idea actually holds up.

The Simulation Hypothesis by Rizwan Virk

Written by an MIT computer scientist (as the subtitle puts it), this book draws on computer science, video games, quantum physics and mystical traditions to argue that we may already be inside a simulated world. The current edition has been updated for recent developments in AI, virtual reality and quantum computing. A good entry point if you want the case for the idea made in plain terms, with plenty of examples from games.

The Case Against Reality by Donald Hoffman

Hoffman's book, subtitled Why Evolution Hid the Truth from Our Eyes, asks whether our senses can be trusted to show us the world as it really is. It is not strictly a book about simulations, but it often appears alongside them on reading lists because it questions the same assumption: that what we see is what is there. It is for readers who are more interested in perception and evolution than in computers.

We Are in a Simulation: How to Win in It by Manthan Bhendkar (our book)

This is a practical manual rather than a work of philosophy. It treats the world as something that behaves like a game and sets out seven rules that never change, then works through choosing your own scoreboard, taking sensible risks, building skill, choosing your people, finding leverage and keeping buffers, before ending with a 30-day plan. It suits readers who find the simulation idea a useful lens and want to know what to do differently next week. Read more about the book.

Finite and Infinite Games by James P. Carse

Carse separates finite games, which are played to win and end when someone does, from infinite games, which are played to keep the play going even as the rules and players change. He applies the idea to everything from sport and board games to culture and religion. It is for readers who want to step back and ask which games in their own life are worth playing at all.

The Almanack of Naval Ravikant by Eric Jorgenson

Jorgenson gathered a decade of Naval Ravikant's tweets, podcasts, essays and interviews and organised them into one book on wealth, judgement and happiness, with a section of recommended reading. It is widely passed around among people who think about life in terms of leverage and long-term compounding. A good fit if you prefer short, self-contained ideas to a single long argument.

How to choose

• If you want to know whether the simulation idea could be true, start with Chalmers, then read Virk for a more enthusiastic take.
• If you are curious about what our senses might be hiding, read Hoffman.
• If you want a way of living rather than a theory, pick Carse, the Almanack or our book.
• Reading one theory book and one practical book together works well, because they answer different questions.

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