SiN Reloaded Review - A Forgotten Shooter Finally Gets Its Due

I never played the original SiN. It came out in 1998, and back in the day, I barely owned a decent TV, let alone a console or computer capable of running this game; therefore, even if I wanted to, it was simply impossible. However, I've heard of SiN, of course, and from what I know, a shooter that came out when the original Half Life was rocking never got much of a chance, to be honest. Nightdive Studios, the developers behind SiN's full remake clearly think otherwise. 

SiN Reloaded arrives nearly three decades after the original, almost like a statement from the developers that such a game deserves another chance, and after spending time with it on PS5, I can say that even though I'm not fond of old games, this one managed to get my attention.

Following some online investigation (thank God for YouTube), I dug up some answers. SiN Reloaded is not trying to reinvent anything. It is the same 1998 shooter, only with sharper textures, modernised controls, and console support it never had the first time round. Here, the biggest question is whether it's worth playing such an old game in 2026, and the answer is both subjective and objective. If you love those games, sure. If not, then this one doesn't have a magic wand that will make you fall in love with them; that's all the wisdom here.

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SiN Reloaded is never trying to be a modern shooter. It is an old shooter rendered in a modern resolution.

Story

Since this is literally the game from 1998, without any additional touches, the story is as simple as all the game stories from that time. You play Colonel John Blade, head of a security force called HardCorps in the fictional megacity of Freeport. The year is 2037, and the villain is Dr Elexis Sinclaire, who runs a biotech company called SinTEK and has, predictably, gone rotten with power. Most games, and even the action movies from the late nineties, didn't bother with sophisticated twists and turns; you have a villain and you have a hero, and the outcome is as predictable as the sun in the morning. Everything that comes across Blade's pistol and rifle sights, everything except for civilians, he will be happy to shoot down, so there isn't much time for telling any significant story here, and to be honest, this approach is totally fine by me.

What made me extremely happy in SiN Reloaded is the way the writers decided to treat in-game humour, which is very dated, by the way. Bulletin boards and background chatter are jam-packed with crude jokes we wouldn't dare to use nowadays, and Nightdive has wisely left almost all of it untouched. Perhaps not everyone will appreciate this call, but if you ask me, it is the right one. This is still an M-rated game through and through, with blood, drug references and all, and some juicy jokes here and there are simply must-have features.

Blade himself talks a lot, maybe too much. His one-liners are entertaining early on, but as the game leans towards the end, they start repeating. Also, the comments he keeps repeating whenever you make a wrong turn or try to open a door that's locked with a keycard he doesn't have yet can get really annoying. Perhaps a couple of different lines would do well, but it is what it is.

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The story of SiN Reloaded is a true story used in the action movies from the nineteen nineties. Shoot first, ask questions later.

In any case, the story follows the nineties trend used in games and action movies, and the good thing is that Nightdive Studios didn't want to change anything regarding that. In essence, SiN Reloaded is a 1998 game wrapped up in modern clothes, and this approach suits it perfectly.

Gameplay

I already repeated many times that SiN Reloaded is an extremely simple game, but the thing that impressed me the most is the amount of variety the developers got out of that simplicity. One mission has you sneaking past guards, the next has you hacking a terminal, and another puts you behind the wheel of a vehicle you were clearly not trained to drive. It sounds like a lot for an old shooter, and it is, but somehow, it fits the gameplay just perfectly. The gunplay in particular is more than decent. Weapons feel weighty; you can feel the kick of a shotgun or the recoil of an assault rifle. I played the game on PlayStation 5, and the controller feedback, including vibration and adaptive triggers, makes it feel even better and more realistic.

One thing I didn't like at all is the motion aiming that's on by default, and as far as I know, it can't be switched off. This is really frustrating, because every time you reload a weapon or change position, the camera shakes like crazy. For everyone who has problems with motion sickness, this can really be an issue; I know it bothered me a lot. Load times are short, and the good thing is that the developers didn't hide them behind cutscenes or dress them up with modern tricks. The loading screens are kept from the original, and that's one more testament to preserving this game's legacy and originality.

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Motion aiming on PS5 can be a problem, especially since it cannot be turned off.

I ran into a couple of bugs here and there, but nothing significant or game-breaking. After some investigation, I found out that the original SiN was a real bug fest, and while almost everything is ironed out, some bugs are still here, deliberately or not. I cannot say for certain.

I liked the level design a lot. SiN is an extremely linear game, as you might have guessed because the open-world structure simply wasn't a thing back then; however, each level you find yourself in is very interconnected. You'll need a key to open that door, or a keycard to open a set of other doors, and all those will be scattered throughout the levels. Each level will have secrets, which is a nice touch and probably a reference to the original too.

The driving sections are not the best part of the experience, to put it politely. Driving vehicles feels like steering a shopping cart with a broken wheel, and some adjustments here wouldn't hurt. Since you'll drive vehicles on a couple of occasions, it isn't something you can easily overlook.

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For such an old game, there is a huge variety in gameplay in SiN Reloaded.

Also, the health and armour system is a bit confusing to me. You'll heal by finding and using first aid kits mounted on walls (good old design), but you can also pick up armour pieces dropped by enemies; however, I really didn't understand where this armour applies, what it's protecting, or when it runs out. A confusing mechanic for sure. Perhaps the developers could avoid adding this mechanic at all or implement it properly so it actually means something.

Visuals and Sounds

SiN Reloaded looks as you might have expected it to look; it is literally the old game rendered in 4K resolution, with all the textures and polygons used in that generation, and as odd as it might sound, this is the only viable way to remaster the old game and to preserve its original taste, which Nightdive has done masterfully. SiN Reloaded runs on Nightdive's KEX engine, and it supports resolutions up to 4K with frame rates up to 144 FPS on PC and up to 120 FPS on consoles. If you would rather see the game exactly as it looked back then, there is a toggle that switches you straight into the original SiN Gold visuals. The character models still carry a slightly cartoonish look, but the improved textures and gun animations make a real difference, especially in the ocean-based stages, which look properly stunning for a game this old.

The soundtrack has had the same treatment as the visuals. The music is varied enough; the tracks that play in the background simply scream nineties, and the gunshots sound really powerful. As I said, I didn't play the original, and even if I did, I definitely wouldn't remember how the gun sounded back then; however, the shooting is impactful now, and when paired with a very good soundtrack, the feeling is quite good.

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SinReloaded simply doesn't want to be a modern game, and its visuals are real proof of that.

Conclusion

SiN Reloaded won't turn me into a nineties shooter fan overnight, and truth be told, I didn't expect it to happen, either. What it did to me instead was remind me why some of these games are still worth remembering, even in their not-so-perfect state. The variety across missions, the gunplay, and the level design packed with hidden secrets have all aged far better than I expected going in.

The two things that actually bothered me are the motion aiming you can't turn off, which is more than a minor annoyance if you're prone to motion sickness, and the armour system that never explains itself properly. The former can ruin the entire experience, depending on your health condition, while the latter is more of an unexplained issue rather than a real problem.

At the end of the day, SiN Reloaded is exactly what it promises to be: the 1998 shooter wrapped up in modern, fancy 2026 fashion clothes. If you already love games from this era, you'll have a great time. If you don't, this remaster won't change your mind, but it might at least help you understand the appeal.