Heated Barrel is a Western themed side-scrolling shoot 'em up game that supports up to four players at the same time. The game offers four typical Western characters to choose from: Howdy Pardner with his shotgun, the Mexican Chi Chi Gringo throwing boomerangs, the axe throwing Indian Little Plum and Billy Six Guns a revolver shooting guy. As you make progress you fight cowboys, Indians and ghosts.

While shooting in all directions you walk across towns, deserts and rivers blasting everything that crosses your path. Along the way, you can pick up several items, including power-ups that make your bullets stronger, a double star item that gives your character a second weapon, so you can shoot both at the same time, extra lives and a barrel, which you can use to blow up everything near you and makes you invincible for a brief amount of time, this is useful when you are surrounded. Some levels have large mid-bosses and all of them have an end-of-level boss.