Bendy and the Ink Machine is a first person survival that resembles several cartoons in the 1920s to 1940s. The player plays as Henry Stein, a retired animator who returns to his old workplace, Joey Drew Studios, and discovers that a machine has destroyed the entire studio and brought certain cartoon characters to life. The game mixes combat with puzzle mechanics.[7] Players explore through a first-person view and have limited physical actions such as running and jumping.[8] Different items can be collected, some of which are required to perform various tasks before proceeding.[9] Cans of bacon soup can also be collected for achievements and to restore Henry's health if he is injured.[10]
Combat is primarily focused around a variety of different melee-based weapons, such as an axe, pipe, plunger, wrench, or scythe,[11] though the scythe is not accessible in normal gameplay. Additionally, there are long-range weapons such as a tommy gun or bacon soup cans. In-game enemies have different strength levels and resilience to damage, forcing players to be tactical about keeping out of reach and striking when necessary.[12] Failure to do so will result in a death.[11] Henry can retreat inside Little Miracle Stations whenever enemies are nearby in order to recover or remain out of sight. If he takes too much damage, he can escape from the ink that consumes him and respawn at one of the numerous statues of Bendy that act as checkpoints.[13][14] The player can save their progress by interacting with time card stations.[14]