Tempest 2000 modifies the gameplay of the original Tempest by adding bonus levels, power-ups, more sophisticated enemy types, and wildly varying web (level) designs.

The game contains a total of 100 webs, with new frame colors and variations every 16 levels. In all versions, the player's progress is saved every couple of levels, and players are allowed to resume by using "keys" to return to the last stage the game saved at.

Power-ups appear as small floating polygons that appear after shooting a number of enemies. Catching the polygon will activate one of a number of progressively more useful capabilities.

If a power-up is caught while warping off of a completed web, the increasingly high-pitched sound of a woman saying "Yes! Yes! Yes!" is played, and the first power-up received in the next stage will be the A.I. Droid.

If the player successfully completes all 100 levels, a special "Beastly mode" is unlocked. This is a harder difficulty setting where the enemies move faster and fire more often.