This is a survival horror game based on the Saw movie franchise. Players assume the role of a reporter investigating the details of his father's sudden death. The object of the game is to survive the lethal traps and puzzles that "Jigsaw," a serial killer, has placed for the player and others. As players explore the dilapidated rooms and corridors, they will encounter a number of puzzle-based traps that will kill the player or other victims if they are not completed correctly or in the allotted amount of time. Some captives are rigged with bear traps/explosives around their heads, or more often, strapped down in elaborate mechanical death traps. The depictions of death from these devices can be intense: One character is killed by a vice that compresses his head until it explodes; a freight elevator cuts a woman in half; a woman drowns slowly in a water tank. In one sequence, a character must cut portions of his face in order to retrieve a lodged key under his eye. Throughout the game, players will encounter enemies that they may choose or be forced to fight against. The majority of combat is melee-based, with players using their fists or a weapons (spiked bats, pipes, blades, guns, etc.) to defend themselves. Several attacks result in large blood-splatter effects and decapitation; pools of blood are often depicted on walls and near dead bodies. During the course of the game, some victims' back stories will include references to drug use/abuse—captives that sold drugs on the street and characters addicted to drugs. Some victims' back stories also include sexual references (e.g., "You like to molest little girls, robbing them of their precious childhood and steering them into lives of prostitution and drug use."). Strong language (e.g., "f**k") can be heard in the dialogue.
