With mechanics that have little to do with the chosen theme, the game surprises with its polish and overall quality.

H.P. Lovecraft has become a major source of inspiration for our beloved industry, and Tesla vs Lovecraft uses this theme to deliver an experience completely different from what you would expect from games based on the writer’s mythology. The result surprises with high difficulty, precise controls and varied mechanics, all wrapped in an elegant and interesting presentation.

Mechanics: 9.5

TvL is a Twin-Stick Shooter, a genre that has been gaining strength and relevance lately. Unlike other games of the style, however, Tesla vs Lovecraft does not use the overused spaceship theme. Here, we control the famous inventor Nikola Tesla on his mission to find H.P. Lovecraft and stop the maddened writer from bringing into the world an extraplanar being with powers capable of warping reality itself. Between you and your mortal enemy stands an army of supernatural creatures.

With the left stick you move Nikola Tesla around the maps, and with the right one you control the direction the scientist is facing. The right trigger fires the currently equipped weapon, while the left triggers are used to activate a secondary weapon/ability and perform the protagonist’s signature move: Teleport.

The power to vanish and reappear a bit further ahead is vital to survive the endless hordes of monsters. There is a limit of 3 ready charges, and they recharge automatically over time. There is enormous strategic depth in this ability, which can be used to cover long distances quickly, cross an obstacle that would halt the enemy horde’s advance, or even reach a spot that would simply be inaccessible.

Exterminating the creatures yields experience points, and each level gained offers two power/upgrade options to pick from. There are some especially effective combos, and you feel encouraged to experiment and find what works best for your playstyle. It is worth mentioning that each new stage always starts with Tesla at level 1 and with no weapons or abilities equipped. It is possible, however, to have some form of more permanent progression in the form of upgrades, which can be bought with ether crystals – a rare and precious resource you will find in the stages or by completing the game’s daily missions.

During each stage, plenty of useful items appear randomly across the map. There is a reasonable collection of primary weapons, including machine guns, shotguns and even some more exotic options such as a lightning launcher or energy balls, as well as numerous power-ups, each with different effects and a limited number of uses. One item in particular comes in 5 separate parts and, when assembled, lets Tesla temporarily use a powerful battle robot to decimate his enemies.

The game also features a cooperative multiplayer mode for up to 4 players to team up and prevent the end of times together. The combined firepower could make everything a bit easier, but the game’s difficulty is naturally high (you cannot revive dead teammates, for example) and the chaos added by putting several playable characters together always offsets this somewhat – resulting in a balanced experience.

Audio and visuals: 7

Tesla vs Lovecraft is a charming game. The theme and art direction help attract and please a good share of the audience, but on closer look it is clear that the models and environments are quite simplified – to the point that it is sometimes hard to tell a dirty/dark floor from a hole that cannot be crossed. The beauty of the game comes from the moments of greatest chaos, with dozens of cosmic monstrosities on your tail and the screen full of energy bolts fired in multiple directions and bouncing off the walls, covering huge areas in a rain of death and destruction. Unfortunately, at least on the Switch, the most intense moments tax the console’s processing too much – and, despite the simplified graphics, the game regularly suffers slowdown.

The soundtrack is interesting and well composed and performed, but its very low variety makes the game’s audio so repetitive that it borders on unbearable.

Fun: 8.5

TvL is a game of technique and precision: the more dedicated the player, the better the results – and there seems to be no limit to how good a player can get! Its controls are easy to learn, but its difficulty makes it a hard game to master. Even after dozens of hours of play, there are always power-up combinations to discover/try… And the best permanent upgrades will demand many hours of play collecting the rare Ether Crystals.

Final thoughts

With its almost steampunk presentation, an interesting theme combining two nearly mythological figures of modern history and very polished gameplay with varied mechanics and endless possibilities, Tesla vs Lovecraft sets a new quality bar for other Twin-Stick Shooters to aim for.

Score

Mechanics = 9.5

Audio and visuals = 7

Fun = 8.5

Worth the 15 dollars? Unless you are avoiding hard/frustrating games, it is worth checking out!

Overall: 8.4

Played on the Nintendo Switch version