Some portals will take you directly to your ship. Zax can also use portals to teleport to different locations on the map. In addition to handheld weapons, Zax will also encounter automatic turrets and companion drones. Energy orbs will become available as he kills enemies (orange orbs for shield energy, blue orbs for weapon energy). Each weapon and shield has its own energy bar, which depletes as Zax fires his weapons or takes hits.
The better the item, the more ore is needed to create it. The collected ore can be used in Zax's ship to create new objects such as weapons, shields and batteries. To use the objects, Zax only has to touch them, and to pick them up he only has to pass over them. Aiming movement is completely free, and Zax can shoot in one direction while moving in a different direction. The player controls Zax's movement with the keyboard and his aiming with the mouse. Zax: The Alien Hunter plays similarly to the Crusader series. Using the high artificial intelligence of his ship Zelon, Zax must help the Korbos from total destruction, collect as much ore as possible, plus parts to fix his ship.
Zax soon discovers that two races populate the planet: the Korbos, a peaceful alien race, and the mechanical beasts led by their god, Om. However, upon reaching land, he is shot down. On a particular planet, he believes there is plenty of ore available to dig up and sell, which makes him a lot of money.