The simplest way to get ALIEN on your system with Microsoft Windows is to use the installer. However, if you want to compile ALIEN by yourself or if you use an operating system other than Microsoft Windows, you can obtain the sources from the GitHub-repository. A cross-platform CMake script is provided there. The master branch contains the latest stable version whereas the develop branch includes the latest features.

After starting the program a default simulation is loaded and a help window with first steps and detailed information is provided. The user interface is designed in a way that the most important functions such as starting and pausing simulations, spatial navigation and simulation parameters can be found in separate windows very quickly. A lot of tooltips give specific explanations.

Various examples can be found in the built-in simulation browser demonstrating capabilities of the engine ranging from pure physics examples, self-deploying structures, self-replicators to evolving ecosystems.