The young sorceress Nikki, the court jester Fargus, and his side-kick Sid the puppet are the three main protagonists of this 3D platform game. While attending a "Wizards in Training" seminar, Nikki accidentally casts a powerful magic spell, which results in a giant monster swallowing the whole village. The three friends must now travel to a place called "Wishing Engine", and be granted a wish to revert the world back to normal.
The characters each have a special movement to kill enemies with. The game uses floating camera angles through a vast Prince of Persia-style world. The goal of the game is to clear the various levels, avoiding spikes and enemies and collecting coins for extra lives.
Pandemonium offers only two-dimensional movement, rather than complete freedom of movement. The characters move along a curving 2D course within a 3D environment.