this is not a cutscene, it’s Python

Beehive.py

Learn real Python by playing.

Write actual code to command a swarm of bees, automate a growing factory, and build the Great Hive. From your first while loop to real concurrency. Every line you write is a skill you keep.

Join the playtest Steam · coming soon

Playtest keys from October 15, ask in #playtest.

Automation Programming Base Building Sandbox Singleplayer

main.py — programs/ running

from lib import goto   # your own pathfinder while True:    if pick():        goto(depot)        drop()    goto(miner)

fig. 2 · the loop above · drawing
seed #4417 · 2 bees · +honey on sink your code flies the bee →

the controller is a real interpreter

Your program lives in a real file on disk. No blocks. No pseudocode.

Open it in your IDE. PyCharm, VS Code or the in-game editor edit the same file. Hit save and the running program hot-reloads.
Real everything. Full autocomplete, real tracebacks with file and line, multiple modules, import and all.
Skills you take with you. Loops, functions, modules, pathfinding, concurrency. All of it real Python, not a game-shaped dialect.

write a while loop. then a function. then BFS, without noticing.

Three things no blocks editor can teach.

Every mechanic in the game is a real programming lesson wearing a bee costume.

python.learn

Learn Python by using it

If you can write a while loop, you can play. Everything the game asks of you is a line of real code you keep.

real files · hot-reload · your IDE

concurrency.race

Real concurrency, races included

Spawn up to three bees, each in its own interpreter. They share the world, not your variables. Losing a race just returns False.

a concurrency lesson disguised as a bee

speedrun.bycode

Speedrun by code

Finish the Great Hive and you win live, mid-run, no click required. A fully automated one-click playthrough is the endgame, not a cheat.

your route knowledge is your save file

a real production chain, not a clicker

Every layer of processing multiplies its value.

Mine ore, smelt bars, press parts, fuse components. Selling to the colony’s Trade Depot earns honey and climbs a progress tree that’s gated on what you sell, never what you hoard. Late game, the factory builds itself.

Iron ore · the first thing worth 1 🍯
Drive Unit · five machine tiers deep, 180 🍯
AI Core · the electronics line’s summit, 621 🍯
build(), buy(), demolish() · put the whole shop under program control

what’s in the box

Features

Real Python (Pyodide)Real files, real imports, real errors, the IDE of your choice.

Procedural voxel worldEvery seed is a new navigation puzzle. Only trees block your bee.

Deep crafting chainFive machine tiers up to the water-bound Assembly Bay.

Progress on what you sellThe economy is the XP bar. Hoarding counts for nothing.

Up to 4 concurrent beesEach one runs in its own Python interpreter.

Meta-automationCode that buys machines, places them and grows the factory.

The Great HiveA five-stage endgame structure the whole chain feeds.

Speedrun modeFresh seed every run, programs persist. Code that generalises wins.

2D map & 3D voxel viewSwitch between them any time.

Fully procedural audioEvery sound is synthesized live, zero audio assets.

One world, one curveThe forest thickens as you get further out.

Windows, via Steam

before you ask

Quick questions

Do I need to know Python?

No. The game hands you a first program that already runs, with every line explained, and each new problem is cheapest to solve with the next Python idea. Python ships inside the game, nothing to install.

Mac / Linux?

No, Beehive.py is Windows only, via Steam. That goes for the playtest too.

When, and what will it cost?

No release date and no price yet. We’ll announce both in our Discord first.

Can I play in the browser?

No. Beehive.py is a Windows game on Steam; there’s no browser version.

Multiplayer?

No, it’s single-player. Your swarm grows to four bees, each running its own Python program.

How do I get into the playtest?

Join our Discord and ask for a key in #playtest. The playtest runs on Steam.

screenshots

See the factory run.

Nothing here yet, and that is on purpose. We would rather show you an empty frame than a mockup. Real captures from the build land here when the Steam page goes live.

coming soon

Want to see them first? We post every step on @collatzlabs.

who’s behind it

A mathematician and a banker, after hours.

Beehive.py started with one question: why does learning to code have to feel like homework, when automation is the most satisfying thing a game can be? No publisher, no budget, no deadline. Quality over timeline.

Collatz Labs is built for more than one game. Software, hardware, everything in between.

studioCollatz Labs

teamJohannes Block · Tristan Liebeck

basedRoßdorf bei Darmstadt, DE

first titleBeehive.py

socials@collatzlabs

it compiles. it flies. it’s waiting.

Ready to write your first while loop?

The Steam page goes live soon. The moment it does, a wishlist is the biggest help a studio of two can get. One click tells Steam we’re worth showing. Follow along until then.

Get a playtest seat Steam · coming soon

discord.collatzlabs.com # playtest · keys from October 15