The game received positive reviews from critics, who praised the story, art, and metafictional aspects of gameplay, including the relationship between the player and Niko.

[2] The game exclusively shows Niko's viewpoint, employing a top-down perspective,[3] while the player is separate, referred to by the name provided in their user account.

[7] These can also lead to interacting with the player's operating system in other ways, which include moving the game window off-screen, mimicking developing film,[1] or changing the desktop wallpaper.

[6] The version designed for consoles, OneShot: World Machine Edition, uses a simulated operating system that allows players to interact with the game like they would with a computer.

Niko's goal is to carry the sun through the world's three areas[10] and place it at the apex of a central tower to restore daylight.

Niko uses it to create a feather pen to get past a guard robot, which lets them enter the urbanized third area, the Refuge, and travel down to the city's surface with the aid of a lamplighter.

If the player chooses to destroy the sun, Niko hears their mother's voice outside the game's window before saying goodbye and walking offscreen.

After completing the game, a note appears in the user's Documents folder, allowing the player to continue on the alternate Solstice ending path.

Cedric and a restored Proto reappear, who, alongside Niko, enter the machine's inner system, "taming" it and reversing its destructive behavior.

This initial version was made in a month on RPG Maker 2003 and released online on June 30, 2014, by creators Eliza Velasquez and Nightmargin (Casey Gu).

[14] Developer Michael Shirt worked alongside Velasquez and Nightmargin to produce the 2016 version of the game; the three make up the indie studio Future Cat.

[16] In an interview with PC Gamer, Velasquez said that the fourth-wall-breaking nature of OneShot was inspired by Psycho Mantis from Metal Gear Solid, a character known to have telepathic powers by reading the player's memory card.

[1] In an interview with IGN Brasil, along with Metal Gear Solid, Velasquez and Nightmargin also cited Irisu Syndrome, Imscared, and Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem as initial influences.

[5][8] A PC version of the World Machine Edition was released as a separate purchase in September 2024, including support for the Steam Deck, which was previously unable to play the game.

[10] Rock Paper Shotgun's John Walker and Ramón Nafria of Vandal stated that its cast was of a wholesome, likeable nature.

[2][13] Conversely, Adventure Gamers reviewer Pascal Tekaia thought that the "alien feel" of the game made it difficult to relate to.

[29] Although he found the thematic coloration interesting, Tekaia claimed the overall direction was too modest, with many of the game's environments being unnecessarily simple.

[28] Ruete praised the character and setting design but criticized that the graphics were repetitive as a result of the game being developed in RPG Maker.

[5] Shaun Musgrave of TouchArcade stated that the game loses a few aspects in the transition, but praised that a player could still be engaged in the gameplay even after these changes.