Coming off of the buzz surrounding the Lead and Gold: Gangs of the Wild West exhibition at the Paradox Interactive Convention, Paradox Interactive has released some new screenshots of the upcoming team-based online shooter, Lead and Gold: Gangs of the Wild West. Relive the violent era of the Wild West as it ought to be with adrenaline fuelled action and fast paced gunfights. Developed by the Swedish game company Fatshark, Paradox Interactive's debut on the Xbox LIVE Arcade is set for a launch in early Spring 2010. So get ready to immerse yourself in this intense team based multiplayer experience drawing from a perfect mix of cool-headed player skill and the brutal close quarter brawl of the classic Western shoot out.

The main game release features four playable archetypes, each one representing a unique playing style. As the archetypes are designed to complement each other, a diverse gang is probably the most effective. Each of the player classes are designed to use their unique weaponry and traits to form a gang that is stronger than its individual members, a sum greater than the parts. The four classes include the Blaster, who wields devastating short range firepower with his double barrelled shotgun but is ineffective at long range; the Deputy, an expert at delivering high volumes of accurate fire and is deadliest at medium to long range where he can make good use of his repeater carbine; the Gunslinger, who’s speed loading a large caliber revolver is most effective at close to medium range and is proficient in fanning, a shooting technique that increases rate of fire at the cost of reduced accuracy; and finally, armed with a powerful hunting rifle, the Trapper is a master of long range sniping.

Lead and Gold - Gangs of the Wild West has a number of features to make it stand out from other multiplayer shooters. No other game in the genre takes team work to such a level as Lead and Gold – Gangs of the Wild West does. Game modes, archetype design and game mechanics are all focusing on team play. Both the maps and the game modes are designed to fit into an iconic western setting. Let’s have a look at some of the game modes you will be able to play such as Conquest, Greed, Powder Keg, Robbery and Shootout.

In Conquest, the objective is to conquer control zones in sequence. One gang advances through zones A to E while the other gang advances in reverse order, from E to A. Conquering a zone unlocks the next zone in sequence. To conquer a zone, clear it of enemy presence and stay in the zone until your gang flag is completely raised. The more gang mates present in the zone, the faster it will be conquered.

The objective in Greed is to carry as many gold sacks to your team drop off zone as possible. A gold sack is spawned on the map and both teams struggle to bring the sack to their respective drop off zone. If a team is successful in bringing the gold to their zone they are rewarded a point and a new sack spawns at the sack spawn zone.

In Powder Keg, the attacking team must blow up the objective/objectives using powder kegs which can be found throughout the map. The defending team tries to stop them. Be careful while carrying a keg, as it can easily blow up in your face – when the sparks start to fly, get rid of the keg as soon as you can! Powder Keg is played in two rounds with each side alternating as attacker and defender.

In Robbery the players are divided into an attacking gang and a defending gang. The attackers are out to steal sacks of gold from the defenders. The defending gang must protect their gold at all costs. To reach the gold, the attacking gang is required to blow their way through using powder kegs. A Robbery match is played in two turns with each side alternating as attacker and defender.

And finally, in Shootout is basically your standard team deathmatch which fans of the first person shooters, or in this case third person, should be all too familiar with. Though it is worth mentioning that it probably hasn’t been done all that much in a wild west setting with four different character classes and six different maps such as Bad Blood Valley, Deadwater Ranch, Devil's Pit, Fort Turnbull, Prospectors Peak and Sinner's Gulch.

Amongst the new game assets released is an interview with Fatshark's Executive Producer Martin Wahlund, who describes the the exciting and fast-paced action players can expect from Lead and Gold. "The focus is on team play," says Martin, who outlines gameplay modes such as Conquest, Greed, Powder keg, Robbery and Shootout. To learn more about the types of characters and game modes, you can view the developer presentation in the video interview below: