Theatre of War is a real-time strategy game that allows the player to experience the major conflicts of WWII. There are five campaigns from five different points of view: Germany, France, Russia, Poland, & Allies (U.S. and England). Controllable units include tanks and other vehicles, anti-tank guns, infantry squads and more.

The game models realistic ballistics for all projectiles, meaning that it calculates not only a realistic trajectory, but also considers terminal ballistics when calculating the effect on the target, including things like angle of incidence, velocity, and projectile properties. Things like armor thickness and slope are also included in the equation. Likewise, the player has detailed control over individual unit behavior, right down to the individual soldier.

The game can be played off-line in a single-player campaign that offers more than 40 missions or on-line in multiplayer mode against up to seven other players.