Despair begins with a disorienting mystery: its protagonist wakes in a subway tunnel and tries to discover what happened to the train’s passengers, as well as to themself. The search leads into underground catacombs, giving the game’s horror a confined, subterranean setting rather than a broad action-adventure backdrop.
Exploration is tied to two fragile resources: a small lamp whose batteries run out quickly, and notes left by other people. Finding scattered notes is central to piecing together the passengers’ fate, while the limited lamp adds pressure to moving through the tunnels. The game’s stated aim is to search the catacombs for every note and assemble an explanation, though its description leaves open whether a definitive answer exists.
Despair is listed as single-player, so its play format centers on one player following this solitary investigation rather than coordinating with others.
