Do you remember the good old days of gaming? The days when a Commodore 64 was the pinnacle of computer entertainment and you had to wait fifteen minutes for a single game to load? Games were much simpler then, yet their popularity has not diminished much at all, as evidenced by the wide range of old-style console and system emulators available on the Internet, and the success of the Xbox Live Arcade, with Sony and Nintendo fast catching up in the catalogue of retro games available on their networks. However, what happens when you combine old-style simplicity with online gaming and updated graphics? Pixelmine's Fireteam Reloaded happens, that's what!

If you're looking for a highly strategic shooter that takes as much brain as it does speed and reflexes then you'd best move on now. Fireteam is a fast-paced, action-oriented game with non-stop murder and mayhem. Controlling one of three available classes, you can compete against computer bots or other humans in a variety of game types such as deathmatch and capture the flag. Control and gameplay is fairly simple; walk around the map, find someone to kill, and kill them, then repeat. It is slightly more involved than that, but we'll get into that after first discussing Fireteam's price - nothing.

Pixelmine have made a demo version of Fireteam available for download and it is certainly worth it if you're curious about the game. First download Pixelmine's game launcher (which gives you access to three of their other games too), then download Fireteam and start shooting. All character classes and game modes are available for unlimited play, with the only restriction being a limit of two maps out of a possible seven. You've nothing to lose and I believe that Pixelmine have made a good decision here, encouraging more people to get online and try it out. As I'll discuss later, Fireteam really needs more human players. First though, let's look at those classes.

The scout class of the game is called, well, the Scout, who moves quickly, has excellent vision, and can see hidden objects like mines and cameras. As you might expect, she doesn't do that much damage with her automatic pistols and is a pretty soft kill. At the opposite end of the spectrum sits the Gunner, an oafish-looking chap with a rocket launcher, slow and lumbering with poor vision. To compensate he can take a pounding and deals big damage with rockets, also harming nearby characters with splash damage. In the middle we find the Commando, who to no surprise moves at medium speed, inflicts medium damage, has medium vision and can take a medium amount of punishment. It should be noted that you can change class at any time during a game, so don't worry about picking one you don't like.

The gameplay is fairly straightforward, consisting mainly of blasting other players before being blasted in return. Various pickups such as grenades and auto-turrets help out, but for the most part it involves holding down the mouse button on an enemy and waiting until he or she falls over dead. Of course, they might well be firing at you too, in which case it usually comes down to the heavier class being the victor. Lost health and spent ammunition can be restored at recharge stations, though unless you're quite careful you're unlikely to live long enough to get back to one.

Fireteam is very clearly made to be a team sport, centring around a strong gaming community who face off against each other in 'companies' (think 'guilds' from other online games) to compete for rank and prestige. Unfortunately, at the time I tested Fireteam, there were very few other people online to play against; the most I ever saw online in the game lobby was two.

Graphically, Fireteam is simple but effective. The characters are quite comically drawn and the background maps are decently designed, giving the game a gritty feeling. However, graphically it certainly looks a few years out of date. Considering the speed at which Fireteam plays you're unlikely to be spending much time appreciating the scenery, though it should be noted that you are unable to see players or pickups that aren't in your field of view, and this is where the Scout has a big advantage. Given that the game uses an isometric 3D view, looking down on the action at an angle, you can sometimes see areas beyond walls that are physically obstructing the view of your character. Enemy players that are in a team member's vision can be seen shaded out on the map, which can at times help you to know which areas to avoid. Unfortunately, the strategic advantage of having a Scout view areas ahead for you is largely lost, since even the Gunner can see almost all the way to the edge of the visible screen, although it can be handy now and then.

I have to say that whoever wrote the music for Fireteam is a genius. Although the sounds in the game are very basic and limited to fairly disappointing bangs and grunts, the music is fast paced and sets the mood perfectly. It also gives a sense of the courage that soldiers take into war and the hardship of battle, which I believe would sit well with the game but for the kamikaze computer-controlled bots.

Fireteam's potential success will all come down to gameplay, and I get the feeling that the bots don't do it justice, homicidal maniacs who blast at everything in reach with no regard for their own safety. It is unfortunate that I was unable to find many human players online, as I think that with full human teams there would be more of an emphasis on strategy and survival, rather than just clicking everywhere and hoping that the other guy falls over first.

I will admit that it has been somewhat difficult to give Fireteam Reloaded a totally comprehensive review, as I believe it would be a much different game when loaded with human players. At the moment, the lack of an active community seems to be stopping Fireteam from being as enjoyable as it was meant to be, as computer bots can never provide the challenge or the teamwork that other humans can. The game comes with voice chat built in, so it's ready and waiting to go. It's certainly worth the download, which will help increase the number of players online, and as it stands it works as a great diversion for the casual gamer. However, until a larger community of players grows around the game, giving consistent opportunities to face-off against other people, Fireteam Reloaded is really being held back from its full potential - so do the right thing and give it a try now!

Reviewed by Steve Rosenthal for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).