One of the first competitive shooters developed with Unreal Engine 4, #REKT is coming to Steam Greenlight next month.

#REKT is the exciting debut title from independent studio Hella Legit Games, featuring the minds of Independent Broadcast Network casters “w1nterswitha1” and “DoctorIsSin”. Built using Unreal Engine 4, #REKT harkens back to the early days of competitive PC shooters, but with a handful of modern twists.

Amidst the chaos of the SGC’s Indie Heaven was the current Alpha build of #REKT, where intrigued onlookers could either play against the developers, or go head-to-head against other SGC 2015 attendees. After sitting down for a test-run, I quickly noticed that #REKT possesses something that the majority of modern shooters are lacking- speed. The pace may not be as jarring as the original Quake, though #REKT still has players doing combat at frantic speeds, roughly around the same pace as Wrack and Serious Sam: The First/Second Encounter.

Players have a surprising amount of mobility options, drawn from both classic and modern shooters alike. The current build allows for players to “bunny hop” by simply holding the spacebar; this tactic is slightly harder to execute in numerous older titles, as it involved tapping the spacebar in a strict rhythm. Players can also slow their descent by holding the spacebar while in-air. I was surprised to find that #REKT deviates from its retro feel by including the ability to wall-jump and wall-run. As seen with with Titanfall and Brink, this can potentially bring a new dimension of strategic combat into each arena match. As with the bunny hop, wall-jumps can be chained across corners or down hallways for an added boost.

Along with a slew of iconic weapons, #REKT‘s environments include both active and passive power-ups, with shield-upgrades, offensive modifiers and reflective barriers at the player’s disposal. While the tentative release may not arrive until December, Hella Legit Games is already planning for community-made arena maps and mod-support. The title is scheduled to go live on Steam Greenlight this August; if #REKT is successfully Greenlit- securing an official release through Steam- the shooter will have additional support for Steam Workshop.

For those who missed the opportunity to play #REKT at SGC 2015, the Alpha is available as a free download via the Hella Legit Games website. Hella Legit Games also hosts “#REKTuesday”, a community multiplayer event in their own server on Tuesday evenings.

Image courtesy of Hella Legit Games