DNA is an Icehouse-game and needs a chessboard in addition to four stashes of Icehouse pieces (in different colors).

The object of DNA is to possess the greatest value of pieces at the end of the game.

A single small piece of each color is placed in one of the center four squares of the board. Some method should then be used to determine which player goes first. It will be important at the end of the game to remember the starting player.

There are three elements to a turn: placement, scoring, and mutation. Placement must happen first. The player then has the choice of mutating and then scoring, or vice-versa. After a player has placed, mutated, and scored, the turn moves to the next player.

The game ends at the end of a turn in which no player has any pieces in a gene pool. Extra turns are played if the game does not end on the fourth player's turn to equalize the total number of turns per player. The value of the pieces (small = 1, medium = 2, large = 3) is totaled for each player's archive. The player with the highest total wins.