Beaming is a top-down 2D puzzle game where the primary game mechanic involves manipulating light beams through a hexagonal grid in order to solve puzzles. Each puzzle has unique solution requirements, though they generally require forming some number of connections. The beams are manipulated through interaction with items, such as reflectors, filters and portals, and through the use of actions, such as rotate, move, toggle and swap. Furthermore, individual grid cells may include attributes, which can modify the way interactions with the cell function.

The game seeks to teach the rules of each item and action by intuition, through the use of ever-more-complicated puzzles, introducing a few rules at a time and then challenging your understanding of them. The presentation is very minimal, though there is a glossary of items, actions and attributes for those who would prefer to have a little more guidance.

Additionally, the game comes with a built in puzzle editor, allowing users to create their own puzzles and share them with others.