The industrial traits of the game begin to appear here. The caves are also the first area of the game where the player goes indoors. Many waterfalls can also be seen in the backgrounds of some areas in the caves. Many of the puzzles seen throughout the caves involve using water to advance and also trying to avoid drowning in said water, as the boy appears to be soluble. The wasteland areas then move into the caves. The brain slugs, which force their host to walk in one direction only, make their first appearance in this area. Forestry from the opening environment can be seen dotted around the area. There are various wooden structures seen throughout this area, obviously built by the natives. They chase the boy, trying to kill him using their darts. The player encounters violence from the natives in this area of the game. Crows are seen perched on the old buildings. Objects that are used in the environment are broken objects like old crates. In the background, broken old shacks and trees are seen. The environment then begins to change when the player meets the murderous children. The Forest area has no industrial traits and differs quite a bit from locations in the game's later chapters. The Forest covers the first four chapters of the game. The boy first wakes up in the forest where he then continues on to cross a large river on a boat, battle against the giant spider and first encounter the psychotic natives of Limbo, who appear to be murderous children. The player plays straight through these environments without any pause or loading screens. Limbo's environments change as the protagonist journeys through a number of different locations throughout the game. Environments Nice and safe in this huge, creepy forest. When afflicted by a slug, previously benign areas and easily-avoidable hazards turn into horrific obstacle courses and death traps.

A frequent puzzle element involves brain slugs which burrow into the boy's head and force him to walk forward, leaving him unable to stop or turn around until he walks into a bright light, which harms the brain slug and makes it turn him around to flee back into the dark. The game introduces a number of different types of puzzles as the game progresses. These puzzles involve the player pulling or pushing objects with true momentum, affecting fluids, and manipulating electromagnetism and gravity to move objects as well as the player. Limbo focuses mostly on physics-based puzzles. Limbo has an extremely generous checkpoint system with almost instantaneous reloading, usually bringing the boy back to just before he set off a trap or fell into a chasm, minimizing (but not avoiding) player frustration.

Limbo features a lot of what developer Playdead describes as 'trial and death' gameplay, requiring players to die frequently (and gruesomely) in order to fully understand the puzzles. The boy can grab onto ledges within reach and lower himself from platforms, climb ladders, push and pull objects and also swing from ropes found in the environment. The game only uses two buttons in addition to movement controls, one to cause the boy to jump, and one for contextual action, such as dragging boxes, pulling levers, or pushing buttons. 'Uncertain of his sister's fate, a young boy enters Limbo.' This is never stated in the game itself, and players are left to interpret the narrative for themselves. The only written source of the game's story can be found on the internet. The story in Limbo is never properly detailed in the game.

It was released on July 21st, 2010, the first game to appear on Xbox Live's Summer of Arcade 2010. The game also contains no loading screens, and can be played continuously from start to finish without pause. There is also very little music throughout the game, with it only being heard in specific locations and maintaining the minimalist approach in its composition. There is no map, no HUD, no dialogue or descriptions - indeed, the only word that appears outside of menus at all is the word 'Hotel' which appears on two signs. The game is entirely monochromatic, with nothing more than black and white and shades of grey filling the world. Limbo is a platform game made by developer Playdead in Copenhagen, Denmark, with heavy emphasis on ambience.

Limbo 2 concept art