The player character, designated Shipbreaker #9346-52 (addressed variously by others simply as "52", "Rookie", or "Cutter"), is assigned to the Lynx Corporation salvage yard at Morrigan Station in orbit around Earth, to work off the $1.2 billion debt accumulated from signing up for the program. They are introduced to the other workers on their crew: Lou Steiner, Kaito Kovetchin, DeeDee Curazon, and the foreman, Joseph Weaver, who is the main point of interaction. As the player progresses through their contracts, Weaver takes a liking to the new shipbreaker, and eventually offers them his old ship, named Beulah for his mother, to fix up for themselves, using parts retrieved from salvaged ships. At the same time, Lou introduces them to the private E-mail server of an illegal unionization movement made up of disaffected Lynx employees pushing for better working conditions, in particular protesting against the "EverWork" program that allows Lynx to reconstitute shipbreakers to continue working when they are killed on the job.
The player must salvage useful materials in abandoned spaceships in exchange for credits so as to pay off the massive debt the player character owes to Lynx. The player is equipped with various gadgets. They can use a tether tool to pull themselves towards large objects or pick up small items. They can also use a laser cutter to incise key structure or sever large objects. A scanner can also be used to identify possible hazards. The ships featured in the game are procedurally generated, and each of them features potential hazards that can kill the player. For instance, players may accidentally cut through electrical wires or coolant pipes, resulting in a huge explosion. They may also trigger an uncontrolled decompression, causing the player, alongside all objects and items in a room, to be flushed out from the ship. One of the most valuable items in the game is the ship reactor. Once it is pulled out from its coolant casing, players need to bring it to the deposit location as quickly as possible or else it will melt down and trigger a huge explosion. As players explore the ship, they also need to manage their resources such as oxygen and thruster fuel. All missions were timed, though the studio subsequently introduced an Open Shift mode that removes the time restraint.