PC Selaco - a GZDoom-based FPS that blends FEAR and the original DOOM with a smattering of System Shock - might be the best FPS of 2024 (Steam Early Access - $22.50)

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

 

 

Save 10% on Selaco on Steam

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Selaco is a brand new original shooter running on GZDoom, featuring thrilling action set pieces, destructibility, smart enemies and a fleshed out story taking place within an immersive game world.

 

 

It might be running in the 19-year-old GZDoom engine, but new cyberpunk FPS Selaco stands head and shoulders above its boomer shooter brethren | PC Gamer

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Out now in early access, it could be the FPS of the year.

 

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It's been a long time since a game came along that put this much effort into its bathrooms. Working sinks and flush mechanisms, yes⁠—standard fare. We've taken those for granted since 1998, but GZDoom FPS Selaco goes the extra mile: out of its dispensers come absurdly well-drawn and animated toilet paper sprites. Next to its sinks are bottles of toilet cleaner, and yes, both can be flushed down the cistern. Flushing the cleaner even makes the toilet explode. It goes without saying, then, that this is GOTY material.

 

That same granular detail and interactivity is all around you in Selaco, a shooter that just entered early access on Steam and whose retro game engine and graphics might initially trick you into sizing it up as mere nostalgia. Poke about in its gore-strewn corridors though, and you find some formidable level design to back up the surface-level flashiness.

 

 

 

New FPS Built Using Doom Tech Is Better Than Most AAA Shooters

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Selaco might look old, but it plays like a modern first-person shooter masterpiece

 

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The big hook of Selaco for many will be the fact that, yes, it was developed using GZDoom—an open-source port of the original Doom engine that includes new features and tech not found in the ancient Id software game from the ‘90s. For the first few hours of Selaco, whenever I saw a massive level filled with individual items that I could pick up and toss around, I’d shake my head and think, “This is built on Doom tech. Wild!” But quickly, the novelty of that gimmick faded and was replaced by another thought: “This is a fucking awesome game.”

 

Selaco is a more polished, well-made, and fun FPS than some AAA shooters I’ve played in recent years developed by massive teams using modern engines and big budgets. And this thing is technically in early access!

 

In fact, I bet as you play Selaco you’ll quickly forget all about its Doom origins as you run around its large, hand-crafted campaign maps filled with different enemies, puzzles, and loads of secrets. That may be the real secret of Selaco: While it’s cool and impressive that it was built using Doom tech, this is so much more than a retro throwback. It’s its own thing, and one of the best shooters in 2024.

 

 

 

Selaco is now in Early Access - one of the best shooters I've played in forever

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The day is finally here, Selaco from Altered Orbit Studios has now entered Early Access so you can see what absolute insanity they've been able to do with the GZDoom code.

 

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There's just so much to talk about when it comes to Selaco, that I really have no idea where to end this. As I went through it the game was just surprise after surprise. The levels themselves are so incredibly detailed and well thought-out, the set-pieces are fantastic to see in action when you having different types of enemies dropping into the map in various ways from blowing doors open, to cutting through the roof to drop down on you and more.

 

That is one of the interesting things about Selaco, not everything is just a run and gun fight. It is a tactical game. So there will be sections where you need to hunker down a bit, find some cover and potentially a position a friendly turret to help you out. 

 

Main advice here overall: F6 quick-save is your friend, so use it often. Even on the Lieutenant difficulty, which they say is "Medium", lots of it was quite a challenge and I died — a lot. There's three higher main difficulty options after that (and two below) and even one more special difficulty after that's supposed to be quite impossible. So if you love a challenge, you'll get it. Or not, the easier difficulties are just fine for people who aren't quite so good at FPS games.

 

 

 

Selaco is a phenomenal new shooter built on the retro Doom engine

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John Linneman gives an early tech review of Selaco, a new retro-style FPS that uses the GZDoom engine with elements of Fear, System Shock 2 and Doom itself.

 

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Behold, the beauty of destruction: as enemies home in on your position, you pull the trigger and marvel as the screen fills with particles, smoke and destruction... and as the air clears, you're left with an eerie calm. This ebb and flow between the quiet and the loud serves as the fabric of Selaco, a new FPS developed by a small team and derived from 26-year-old technology.

 

The game's technically in early access, but you'd never guess it - the included campaign has a lot of meat and the experience is impressively polished. It's also more distinctive than most modern boomer shooters, almost a union between Monolith's seminal FEAR, Irrational's System Shock 2 and id Software's Doom. It's that latter point that is so crucial. Selaco is built on GZDoom, a fork derived from ZDoom, which itself was created thanks to John Carmack's release of the original Doom's source code in 1997. This makes for a fascinating game, with creative use of older technology combined with flow and design that we haven't really seen applied to a sprite-based shooter before.

 

Arguably the most impressive aspect is the sheer volume of interactivity and destruction. Each level is packed full of surfaces and objects designed to be shot or interacted with, with the game inviting you to play with its dense environment by destroying smaller objects outright with gunfire or progressively damaging larger voxel-based objects. This is all accompanied by impressive and often unique sound effects, layered on top of the game's soundtrack, which moves from atmospheric exploration to the driving beats of combat. There are neat visual effects here too, with fire extinguishers releasing powder that's lit by nearby light sources for example, and there's even the option to have destruction persist through loading screens. It's satisfying to be able to tell where you've been through the trail of destruction that you've wrought.

 

 

 

 

Selaco early access review: GZDoom wizardry makes for sophisticated FPSing reminiscent of F.E.A.R.

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Selaco is an FPS that strikes a nice balance between tactical and frenetic, with dense maps and immersive sim tomfoolery that'll delight and possibly frustrate.

 

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You like F.E.A.R.? You like DOOM? Yeah, I bet you like FPSing where you're outsmarting soldiers in offices with a nailgun and gibbing demons like you're ploughing a Hummer through a sequence of pheasants in an alternate universe Evil Somerset. No, it doesn't boast a title in all-caps, but Selaco's early access release more than deserves it's spot as a must-play for those who desire some sophistication with their ultra-violence.

 

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And they're made all the more brilliant by clever enemy behaviours that escalate as you progress in Selaco. Early on you'll have enemies who try and flank you, a la F.E.A.R., and later they'll develop techniques to match your growing arsenal. Some will start donning shields and some will even be designated squad leaders (marked by an icon), so you'll want to shoot them first to reduce the strength of their allies. General variety is on point, too, with standard troops and heavier troops with miniguns and flying bastards who zip around. Again, it feeds into fights being more than just the usual boomer shooter meat grinder, as you really do have to consider where you're positioned and what's the best tool to unravel your opponent's defences.

 

For an early access release, Selaco is in a really good state. You've got a lengthy campaign comprising 30 maps and plenty more to go with it, weapon and enemy-wise. There are modifiers that make subsequent playthroughs harder, too, like one that makes you start over from scratch after beating a level. And everything feels polished - I didn't encounter any hitches or bugs at all. The devs say they're aiming for Selaco's 1.0 release sometime in early 2026, but honestly, it's worth getting on now if you're a fan of good FPSing.

 

 

 

Selaco Is a Retro FPS Mixing Old-School Doom Vibes With Modern Call of Duty Shooting

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Fusing DNA from immersive sims and boomer shooters of years past, Altered Orbit Studios has created a compelling star-bound first-person shooter.

 

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Selaco is a fast-paced retro first-person shooter, a veritable blast from the past. But in many ways, the game is also a glimpse into the future for so-called boomer shooters that bring the vibes of old-school games like Doom and Quake to the modern era. This Steam Early Access release -- offering the first chapter of three planned for the final game -- will likely shape the landscape of retro-inspired FPS games for years to come.

 

Created with the GZDoom engine, Selaco is cut from the same cloth as many other iconic shooter games from yesteryear. In gameplay and visual style, it's essentially a cousin to games like Heretic, Hexen and Strife... and a second cousin to Doom itself. Even still, the Altered Orbit Studios team performed some techno-wizardry to create a consistent in-game world.

 

Selaco pays homage to a bevy of FPS greats spanning several decades: The plot is in many ways reminiscent of Half Life's story; enemy behavior is just like what you'd see if you booted up FEAR; the tense atmosphere ratcheting up across the space station vaguely reminds me of Doom 3; and the weapons you have to work with (pistols, shotguns, plasma rifles, nail guns and more) are mostly cribbed from retro shooters.

 

The fusion of these disparate threads shouldn't work. These first-person shooters feel too different to build one consistent experience that serves as a spiritual successor to all of them. But Selaco's gunplay is satisfying, and its setting is unique and well-crafted to stand apart from those other shooters. Plus it's got its own neat distinguishing feature: a wholly persistent world that maintains every area in the damaged state your running-and-gunning left it, making players feel like their actions matter from start to finish, something I've never seen at this scale with any other boomer shooter.

 

 

[stepee]

Well that was a quick purchase!

[legend]

Yeah I'll pick this one up soon.

[stepee]

First impressions isn’t as good as i hoped. Idk where to go and I don’t have a gun yet, kinda frustrating 

[stepee]

Ok got the gun, that wasn’t clear. It’s fun now!

[stepee]

ok fuck this rules

 

Deck fam note that it has steam deck options to pick at the start for quality and performance which is amazing and I picked quality and it’s 60fps locked

[stepee]

Man it’s really good but I fucking hate not having ammo and the game seems to be all about that, hoping that eases up 

[stepee]

Hmm kinda seems more of an immersion sim than FEAR. Seems good in its own way but if you want FEAR then: 

Trepang2 on Steam

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Become the ultimate badass in Trepang2: A gory, action-packed FPS set in the near future. Unleash all hell on your enemies, dodge bullets and leave a trail of destruction in this hardcore and frenetic...

 

 

so good 

[stepee]

Fuck Trepang2 is so good though. Anyone with a deck needs to buy this asap.

[stepee]

Yeah I like this a lot but it’s just not fear 

[stepee]

actually this does open up to be fear and it’s great (trepang2 is amazing also tho)

[stepee]

Man this is Gzdoom based? Crazy how attractive it is to me still.

[Brian]

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

Selaco is an extraordinary shooter that does backflips with the Doom engine

WWW.EUROGAMER.NET

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Selaco is a brilliant retro shooter that does incredible things with GZDoom.

 

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From here, two things quickly become clear about Selaco. The first is that its combat is ferocious. The starting assault rifle kicks like a startled mule, spraying blazing yellow tracer bullets that rip up the environment, shattering glass, shredding boxes, and filling the air with concrete dust. Explosive weapons can rip whole chunks out of the level, leaving ragged, rebar-riddled holes in the geometry. Enemies are particularly squishy, losing arms, legs, and heads to sustained gunfire, or outright exploding in puffs of purplish goo. It stretches credulity that Selaco is built in GZDoom (a third-party sourceport of Doom's original engine).

 

The second thing you'll notice is that, despite its messy spectacle, Selaco isn't a mindless run-and-gun affair. If you try to play it this way, you will quickly become either A) dead or B) lost. One of the main ideas Selaco draws from F.E.A.R is enemy AI that tries to out-think you. Selaco's goons are cunning little scamps, deploying evasion tactics, trying to flank you, or flush you out with grenades.

 

I don't know whether Selaco's enemies are smarter than F.E.A.R's, but they definitely feel nastier. Despite their intelligence, F.E.A.R's enemies always felt like they were locked in a room with you (perhaps because of its bullet-time mechanic). In Selaco, you're definitely locked in with them. They're extremely aggressive, closing on you like an estate agent who's just had a visit from the bailiffs, and even the most basic goon can utterly shred your health counter if they get to point-blank range. Their radio chatter is also more manic and hostile. You really get the sense these bastards want to murder you.

 

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Moreover, Selaco places equal emphasis on puzzling as it does on combat. You're constantly pursuing circuitous routes to track down keycards, reactivating power systems to access new areas, or shuffling around explosive canisters to blast your way to the next room. This includes dozens of secrets and optional areas that constantly tempt you off the beaten path. Like a Victorian urchin in front of a confectionary, you're constantly pressing your nose against the windows of locked rooms, scanning for clues to how to enter. You might see an open air duct that suggests the other end is somewhere nearby, or spy black scratches on a wall that imply it can be destroyed with explosives. Rooting out these hidden areas is a game in itself, and an enormously rewarding one at that.

 

Selaco's smartest design decision, however, is how clearly it delineates between combat and exploration. This isn't a shooter where every corridor is crammed with enemies, and the periods between gunfights can be surprisingly long. Instead, most combat scenarios are carefully crafted set-pieces, often sprinkling their own twists and ideas into its dynamic, destructible fighting arenas. One example, taken from the game's second level, sees you defending a tactical assault where enemies breach the room you're in from multiple angles. They smash through the walls, blow through the ceiling, cut through the closed metal shutters with a blowtorch, each phase giving you just enough time to prepare for the next wave. Another involves battling in and around a fast-food restaurant at the centre of a huge car park, tossing knives from the kitchen area at enemies for a quick kill.

 

[stepee]

Kinda weird this is even early access? Seems quite developed.

 

Watched John’s video today and mentions lots of cool stuff with the tech. Really enjoy his videos on more niche stuff like this. I’m surprised he didn’t show off how shooting a fish tank slowly drains the water and then you can smash it and the fish flop around then die, I thought that was cool.

 

He mentions that the beginning is a bit confusing to navigate and that a lot of people had that reaction including himself but it tightens up after the initial area - so that’s good! Maybe that’s part of it being early access.

 

Was playing more last night and yeah it’s quite good, just not explicitly Fear as it combines Doom and Immersion Sim into the mix. Jiving with it more now on its own terms and it seems pretty special. I feel like fans of Prey Reboot would like this and ofc Shock/Deus fans.

[stepee]

This game really does look fantastic even playing on tv once you max it out, it can scale pretty high with some cool effects. At 8k/120 with everything maxed/extreme it even gives the 4090 a workout! 

 

They definitely will want to improve the navigation in the opening areas so you don’t get lost so easily. Also the explanation of how to even make sense of the map comes in pretty late, after I’ve already been wandering around wondering where the hell to go. Since everyone seems to complain about this, I imagine they will fix it up for the full release.

 

Got back on track now, hopefully I’m almost out of this part as I hear the rest doesn’t suffer the same issue. But besides that part this area is fantadtic with great design and fun shoot outs. Basically any time I’m not aimlessly wandering in circles it’s a blast. So yeah, hopefully on release it’s going to be only positives.

 

I went to the page to see why this even is early access. And I guess even though it’s 30 maps already this is only the first of three planned chapters. They aim to release the next one in 12-16 months and then the third/final release late 26. That is way further off than I thought for how polished this is. But that is also a huge ass shooter if they are planning like 90 maps.

 

Hopefully it’ll release on console after early access as well. I could see this being a nice sized hit for them.

 

[legend]

Finished chapter 1 tonight (which is all EA has right now). Steam has me clocked in at 17.7 hours. It was a great ride with some really fun battles.

 

@stepee would have enjoyed the rest of it.