Mr. Driller is a real-time puzzle game that relies solely on quick-thinking and a bit of planning. The gameplay is a combination of Tetris and Boulder Dash: You have to drill down through multi-colored blocks to reach the bottom while avoiding the consequences of reckless drilling; blocks left without a foundation will drop down after a while, potentially crushing Mr. Driller . As the hero's air supply is depleted with time, the player must regularly grab oxygen pick-ups.
The game features different challenges, including the "2500ft" and "5000ft challenge", which are five and ten levels long respectively in the PlayStation version.