WipEout Pure is the first adaptation for the PSP of the long-running Wipeout series. Players take part in a futuristic racing league known as the FX300 Racing League and control a fast hovercrafts on tight, cornering tracks, vying for first place in one of many tournaments. There are ten anti-gravity vehicles available to use (two need to be unlocked), each with their own characteristics in speed, handling and acceleration. Vehicles are further divided into classes that are unlocked gradually. In later classes most of the vehicles become much faster and require more precise steering at fast speeds. In the same vein, players can unlock new tournaments.

There are a total of sixteen tracks to race on: twelve designed from the ground up for the PSP, as well as four classic Wipeout tracks. Each track has its own obstacles, as well as weapon pick-ups (both offensive and defensive) and speed boosters. The different game modes include single races, tournaments of sets of races, time trial and zone races. In the zone races the player goes through a number of increasingly difficult zones on his own without the ability to slow down until the vehicle explodes because of collision damage. New game elements are unlocked through the Tournament mode.

The game features wireless play over ad-hoc mode (PSP-to-PSP). It was also the first PSP game to support downloadable content with extra teams, tracks and PSP skins. Some of these packs are only available for specific regional versions. The European version of the game supports game sharing.