The player controls the boy throughout the game. As is typical of most
two-dimensional platform games, the boy can run left or right, jump, climb onto
short ledges or up and down ladders and ropes, and push or pull objects.
Limbo is presented through dark, greyscale graphics and with minimalist
ambient sounds, creating an eerie, haunting environment.
The dark visuals also hide numerous environmental and physical hazards, such as
deadly bear traps on the forest floor,
or lethal monsters hiding in the shadows, such as a giant spider. Among the
hazards are glowing worms, which attach themselves to the boy's head and force
him to travel in only one direction unless bright light comes in contact with
it, which changes the direction of the player until it is removed by static
NPCs.
The game's second half features mechanical puzzles and traps using machinery,
electromagnets, and gravity. Many of these traps are not apparent until
triggered, often with deadly consequences. The player is able to restart at the
last encountered checkpoint, with no limits placed on how many times this can
occur. Some traps can be avoided and used later in the game; one bear trap is
used to clamp onto an animal's carcass, hung from the end of a rope, tearing the
carcass off the rope and allowing the branch and rope to retract upwards and
allow the boy to climb onto a ledge otherwise out of reach. As the player will
likely encounter numerous deaths before they solve each puzzle and complete the
game, the developers call Limbo a "trial and death" game. Some
deaths are animated with images of the boy's dismemberment or beheading,
although an optional gore filter blacks out the screen instead of showing these
deaths. Game
achievements
(optional in-game goals) include finding hidden insect eggs and completing the
game with five or fewer deaths.
Screenshot
