Door Kickers Review

Door Kickers is a tactical strategy game in which players plan and execute SWAT missions from a top-down perspective. The most likely touchstone for it is the tactical planning mode in early iterations of the  Rainbow Six series. Unlike those modes though, players of Door Kickers take an operation from the first door breach to the final "tango down" from the strategic bird's-eye view, which is equal parts strategic, tense, replayble, and immensely enjoyable.

The basic setup for any scenario  is largely the same: there are baddies doing bad things in some place, and players need to find the best way to take said baddies down via some tactical maneuvering. From a gameplay perspective this involves choosing the loadouts for each member of the team, placing them on a pre-defined starting space, and then tapping and dragging out commands and routes to determine each team members' course of action. Although these controls can feel like a bit of a struggle at times, Door Kickers can be paused to queue up actions at any time so that players can carefully plan out pretty much whatever they want to do.

As easy as it might seem to kick down every door and go in guns blazing, there are actually a surprising number of considerations to make for each of the  80 missions and and 6 campaigns. If hostages are present, for example, a stealthier strike will help prevent civillian losses. Door Kickers facilitates these different approaches via a large selection of character classes, weapons, and gear that are available for unlocking.

The best thing about Door Kickers is definitely its sheer amount of variety and depth. Breaching doors can involve anything from kicking it down to picking locks, placing breaching charges, tossing flashbangs, and more, with each method having its own set of advantages and drawbacks. Similarly, scenarios can take place in garages, summer homes, on tarmacs, and so on, with scenarios involving evidence recovery, arrests, hostages, snipers, etc. Basically, any high-intensity police situation that players can think of is available to pick out any play, and the mission generator ensures a nearly limitless amount of new ways for players to test their mettle.

For something that has so many options, Door Kickers feels a lot more accessible than similar games like Breach & Clear. Even though its controls can hold players up from time to time, the ability to pause the action at any moment helps keep things from getting frustrating. As a result, there's little standing in the way of Door Kickers. It plays great, feels satisfying, and offers a ton of strategic police action.