Various objects, such as data-logs or healing packs, can be picked up and stored in an inventory. The player can also don a protective armoured suit that enables him to survive the harsh atmosphere outside the facility and explore the archaeological dig. Upgrading and swapping the battery is key to the player's progress at certain points in the game. Functions include a regeneration system that heals all damage when activated, as well as a powerful projectile weapon (known as the PFD Prototype). The body of the player character houses an exchangeable (and depletable) battery that powers various body functions put there by the experimenters. Also, since camera angles are fixed, the view can change in an unpredictable manner if the player crosses scene-thresholds during the fight, a gameplay problem first seen in Alone in the Dark. Combat can be awkward and has somewhat of a learning curve since enemies must be faced at the correct rotation angle for attacks to connect. The player can also enter a combat stance that makes several punch and kick movements and hand-to-hand weapons (if carried) available. Neither is a game in which you click on an icon, then sit back and watch a scene take place.' The player character can rotate left and right, walk and run forwards and backwards, and sidestep. Just because a game has FMV that doesn't automatically make it an interactive movie, because you have very little control over the actor. In a 1994 magazine article he said that 'Interactive Movies have become a buzzword, so it's being applied to games which really aren't.

Richard Garriott helped kick off the Interactive Movie theme. This was a deliberate idea of Ken Demarest and Jack Herman. The player has full control over the main character's actions. The ultimate goal of the game is not obvious at the beginning, since the player is unaware of his identity, which depends on his actions during the game. BioForge centers mainly on exploration and puzzle solving using items, and also on fighting and interaction with NPCs.

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