The player is in a dark forest. The only hint is a placard nailed to a tree, with a warning: anyone seeking the Orb will meet a fitting end, signed King Aken by his Lord Lieutenant K'vin. Further exploration reveals a stone pedestal, a log cabin, and a dark cave. Exploring the cave without a light source will result in certain death by a yallou. It's up to the player to figure out how to proceed.

Book One of The Usurper: The Mines Of Qyntárr (in-game title) is a text adventure game with a fantasy setting. The game tracks how many moves the player makes and will award the player points (out of 500) for progress in the game.