DESOLATE offers to go on another journey through a fictional post-apocalyptic world. The user assumes the role of one of the members of the Volunteer group. These people have never held a weapon before, but now they are faced with a dangerous mission. They travel to Granichny Island to investigate paranormal activity and gather information about an incident that occurred here two years ago. Here, you will have to face many dangers, including bandits and monsters that inhabit these lands.

DESOLATE has an open world, so you can freely explore your surroundings. As you progress, you will be able to discover new locations, including forests, wastelands, plains and other areas of the terrain. In addition, there are military bases and formations here, which have now become a refuge for the local inhabitants. Therefore, you should find a weapon as soon as possible and be ready to use it. Most often, these will be tools supplemented with several parts such as circular saws or sheets of metal. When meeting an enemy, a health bar will immediately appear on the screen. Some of them will also be carrying weapons, so you should be careful in open combat.

As for the tasks, they come down to standard actions. This could be searching for specific things, visiting a location, or clearing an area for further study. All key points are displayed on the screen, and the system shows the distance that needs to be covered to the goal. For greater convenience, you can use the global map, where previously visited places are marked. At the same time, the unknown space is hidden in black.