Gameplay was deemed unique by many critics, who praised its integration of Gex's abilities as a gecko. Lee called "Gex"s gameplay mechanics "the icing on the cake" as well as praising the inclusion of game secrets. Gilde aimed particular praise towards Gex's ability to climb surfaces, saying that players could "get into the groove" of using the skill despite stating that it was initially frustrating trying to guess which walls were and were not climbable. A reviewer for "Next Generation" contested that Gex's wall climbing ability was "not completely unique" but that it nonetheless added an interesting dimension to the gameplay. Storm advised that the game controlled the best when playing using the 3DO's Goldstar controller.