Polar Rescue is an action game played from a first person point of view. You are the commander of a submarine on a rescue mission beneath the ice of the north pole. On each level, your goal is to locate and rescue survivors of an expedition. The waters you need to explore are quite dangerous; large chunks of ice and maelstroms will slow you down, while enemy submarines and underwater mines will try to stop you.
As you navigate through the treacherous environment, you'll also need to manage your oxygen supply. Your submarine is equipped with a limited number of torpedoes to help you destroy obstacles and enemies in your way. Destroying enemy submarines will give you more oxygen, but running out will result in losing one of your subs. The game ends when all of your subs have been destroyed.