Another retro classic has faced the rigours of a digital makeover and been flown to the shelves of the Xbox Live marketplace. The 1941 and 1942 games in the 1980s were popular WWII shooters that, obviously for their time, were 2D overhead scrolling shooters. 1942: Joint Strike on the Xbox Live Arcade will use a similar scrolling mechanism to its predecessors but will be based in a 3D world and although it will draw on the original games for gameplay and other effects it is an entirely new addition to the series.

The 1980s were an era devoid of enemy AI and, in true Space Invaders style, enemies attacked in waves of predictable pattern after predictable pattern. 1942: Joint Strike offers this same mindless style of play, which isn’t to say that it’s devoid of fun as long as you don’t wade in expecting a full on World War II simulator.

Although 1942: Joint Strike is obviously set in a WWII themed world, it is completely fictional and while some of the planes may look believably realistic, some (namely the old school boss battles) are blatantly unbelievable and more enjoyable for it (if you can’t inject unbelievable into video games, just when can you?)

Dodging the slow moving projectiles and hurtling your own bullets, missiles, and assorted projectiles provides a fun experience but where the game truly comes alive and earns the Joint Strike section of its name is in the co-op multiplayer mode played over Xbox Live. Not only does this offer unique gameplay opportunities flying in your own formations but several of the newly developed weapons can only be utilised by a co-op partnership. The lightning lasso is a crackling, high def, fork of lightning that emerges from one plane and grounds on the other completely obliterating anything that is unfortunate to find itself in between.

Available today, 1942: Joint Strike is an updated and high definition release from the 1980s series of games, costing 800 Microsoft points that is an absolute hoot of old school goodness sure to win new fans over as well as attract those of us that were equally addicted to the original.