14 DAY TRIAL // Door Kickers is a game about how even the best-laid plans can be undone by just one terrorist with a high-powered rifle hidden in a corner, just beyond an agent’s eye sight.
The game created by developer Killhouse Games is a top-down take on tactics-driven shooters, somewhat in the vein of the old SWAT, allowing players to choose a team of operatives and then take on enemies in a variety of environments, aiming to rescue hostages and take out bombs.
The game is entirely real time, but at any point the player can use in order to evaluate the tactical situation and issue orders.
Enemy placement is random each time and that keeps the challenge fresh at all times, especially in some of the more complex environments.
Each operative can carry a pistol or a shotgun and they also have access to flashbangs and other gadgets in order to get through doors and see what’s behind them.
Door Kickers is fast paced and fun, with moments when plans come together almost magically and all enemies are eliminated with no losses.
I keep trying to create an initial plan to clear the whole level and am often amazed at how hard it is to take into account all the potential hiding spaces and how even a solid preparation phase can be ruined in 5 seconds of actual game time.
The missions become quite difficult later on, but Door Kickers always feels challenging rather than unfair and it’s interesting to see how failure creates a feedback loop that leads to better overall planning and more efficient in-game actions.
The game is currently in alpha version 4, but the core experience already feels complete and interesting.
Because Door Kickers is still evolving any interested players can support the game via the official store and then drop by in order to add feedback for the team creating it.
