You Have to Win the Game is an old-style exploratory platformer. The game is difficult, but not impossible to pass. By default, you can try to make it happen, but you can also see how far you can go with just one life in "YOLO" mode.

You Have to Win The Game is a platformer with very simple mechanics, where you have to run, jump and avoid dangers, while collecting money bags in hard-to-reach places. The player is forced to wade through very interesting and ingenious caves, often returning in their own footsteps. Over time, he will acquire equipment that will make the task a little easier and will open the way to other rooms.

There are two graphical modes of the game. You can play in a 4-colour CGA frame, on a CRT screen with a visible frame, or turn on a more modern, 16-colour EGA look. You Have to Win the Game is also available on Steam, but this is a more difficult version of the game and equipped with DLC, with which you can play with the cat and play with 9 lives.