Just fixed this problem myself, in steam right click fleet command in your library, click properties, set launch options, type -windowed.
Now right click your desktop, click screen resolution, advanced, then show all modes, and pick your resolution (or 1600x1200 which is the max the game plays at) and 16 bit color (IMPORTANT!). now run the game, and it should work.
Seems like the initial splash screen causes the error. When you try to put the application into compatibility mode it causes problems with steam.
Hope that helps.
__________________
|