[4] In Door Kickers, the player commands the SWAT team of the fictional Nowhere City Police Department in operations against criminals and terrorists.

Most level elements and enemies are concealed by a translucent blue or solid black fog of war effect that is removed when a trooper's sight cone passes through it.

In some missions, the player is supported by an unseen sniper that can target and instantly kill any enemy visible from their end of the screen.

However, the sniper requires time to target an enemy, can unintentionally hit others in the crossfire, and usually only covers a small section of the level.

The player manages a SWAT team of ten troopers, who can have their classes, weapons, armor, utilities, gear, and character customized.

Equipment includes flashbangs that stun those in their detonation radius, stinger grenades that can kill or daze depending on proximity, breaching charges that destroy any door but can kill those on the other side, lockpick machines that hasten lockpicking, and tasers that can be used to non-lethally stun and arrest suspects.

Door Kickers features six main campaigns, each with a certain number of missions and a loose plot involving the NCPD's efforts to counter organized crime and terrorism.

Rock Paper Shotgun stated that "Door Kickers is a smashing top-down tactical masterclass, with enough missions to shake a nightstick at, randomised enemy placements to add further variety, and a bundled level editor allows devious designers to create their own maps and missions … Door Kickers is a complete package of planning, panicking and policing".

[5] Indie Statik proclaimed that "...it's a thing of beauty and manages to capture the planning and satisfying execution of more complex strategy games, as well as the gung-ho and the popping-off of growly man in military shooters.

[17][18] Door Kickers 2 departs from the law enforcement setting of the first game and is set in the fictional Middle Eastern country of Nowheraki during American special forces and paramilitary operations against an insurgency in the country, led by the U.S. Army 75th Rangers, CIA SAC Special Operations Group, and the Nowheraki SWAT officiers with local militia.

Among the features introduced in Door Kickers 2 are improved 3D graphics, the inclusion of lethal grenades and wall-destroying explosives, heavy weaponry such as rocket launchers and machine guns, a low-profile stealth mechanic, and a reworked loadout system with faction-specific arsenals and the ability to mount attachments on some weapons.