The game is a first-person shooter that follows the plot of the first Die Hard film. Players take the role of John McClane, and try to stop the terrorist attack on the Nakatomi Plaza. The game's levels are based on the sets from the film. The various action scenes from the film have also been recreated.

The game expands on the film's plot, and adds a few missions not found in the film, such as escorting a SWAT team around the building or saving various hostages stranded on various floors of the building.

New York City policeman John McClane (Bruce Willis) is visiting his estranged wife (Bonnie Bedelia) and two daughters on Christmas Eve. He joins her at a holiday party in the headquarters of the Japanese-owned business she works for. But the festivities are interrupted by a group of terrorists who take over the exclusive high-rise, and everyone in it. Very soon McClane realizes that there's no one to save the hostages -- but him.