You play as an astronaut named Ben, whose mission is to find and rescue the missing Taylor from a strange planet governed by apes. Ben must navigate side-scrolling levels, where he can jump to reach high ledges, crouch to avoid bullets, crawl through narrow spaces, and roll away from danger.

NOTE: Originally titled Planet of the Apes, but had to change the title due to copyright infringement.

In what may be the first video game ever to put the player in the shoes of Charlton Heston, Planet Of The Apes for the Atari VCS placed you in charge of the fate of lost-in-time astronaut Colonel George Taylor, stranded on a future Earth where apes have risen to the top of the food chain and keep human beings in cages. As with the title of the game, references to the copyrighted name 'Taylor' were removed from the revived version of the game.

The action takes place over several screens: Deserts; Forests; the Apes' Village; a River Crossing; Subterranean Caverns; and the climactic Statue of Liberty scene from the film. There are three different kinds of apes in this game: Chimpanzees - these little guys are harmless and can be touched without fear; Orangutans are a bit bigger and a lot more dangerous than the Chimpanzees, touching them will get you captured; Gorillas are the most dangerous of all the apes, not only can they capture you, but they can shoot at you as well.