Scramble is a side-scrolling shooter where you pilot a plane through varied terrain to infiltrate an enemy base and destroy it. Your goal is to avoid obstacles such as missiles, tanks, UFOs, and other enemy artillery while trying to reach your target. Colliding with any of these enemies or the landscape will cause you to lose one of your planes.
The gameplay involves using bombs and guns to destroy most of the enemies you'll encounter. You have a limited amount of fuel for your plane, and running out will cause it to crash. To replenish the fuel supply, you must bomb the fuel depots that appear on the ground occasionally.