Little Alchemy can be played fast but gives you enough time to go at your own pace. As a result, it only requires the mouse to play. The game screen has a large empty space where you can combine and host different elements while the column on the right contains all the elements available to be added. To put an element into play, click on it in the column, hold down the mouse button, and drag it into the playfield. To combine elements, simply drag one on top of another. If the combination is successful, the two elements will disappear and be replaced with one new one. If the combination fails, nothing will happen and you'll still have the two separate elements. If you want to remove elements from the field, just drag them to the Recycle icon in the bottom right corner of the field.
The game ends once you've come up with every possible combination and the final elements will be clearly marked with an underline.