The game uses button mashing as the main part of gameplay, but in three events it isn't used (archery, diving) or is slow-paced (swimming).

Each computer athlete has a fictional name and nationality (choosing from UK, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, United States, Japan and the Unified Team, everyone with its own anthem snippet) and actual strengths and weaknesses: J. Balen, for instance, is a frequent 100 m and 110 m hurdles record breaker but only an average hammer thrower.

Also, each computer-controlled player seems better in a particular event depending on his country: Germans usually take the top spots in archery, Italians on swimming, Russians on pole vault, Americans on sprinting and so on.

The game allows the player to practice, play mini-Olympics (where some events can be turned off) or full Olympics.

The game is easy for experienced players, except for the sprinting and hurdles events and the hammer, as the computer is able to break records quite easily in Olympic, and they also rely on a fair share or luck and random.