Teslagrad was originally released for the PC back in 2013, but has now made its way over to the Nintendo Wii U as a downloadable game content. Essentially, it is a 2D side-scrolling platformer that offers plenty of challenges in the form of both action and puzzle-solving. You start off with your character as a young boy who happens to end up being chased into an abandoned tower.
While Teslagrad does not feature any voice acting or text dialogue, the story still unfolds effectively through the use of the environment to illustrate what’s going on. To illustrate, the background features bigger and stranger elements. Throughout this setting, there are sequences that reveal the story of a kingdom split apart on account of electricity. The use of this story-telling effectively provides a deeper and emotional insight of your character and his predicament.
Control-wise, Teslagrad is very easy to get going and playing. Movement is quite responsive and fluid which is important for a 2D platforming game like this. In addition, there is the jump button which works effectively during both the action and puzzle-solving sequences. But there’s more to the control scheme considering your other abilities. Using the L and R buttons, you can change the color of the electro magnets between red and blue. This is important considering that different colors will end up attracting each other while those of the same color will detract. As such, you will be able to move magnets around which is important especially during the puzzle-solving.
As you progress further, you have access to magnetic cloaks which basically allows you to fly. This is very useful since with this ability, you can reach certain areas within the level. On the flip side of things, it can add another layer of difficulty since you can very well end up being drawn into environmental hazards because of these magnetic forces. A very helpful skill your character also possesses is the teleportation. Here, you can quick move left or right within a short distance, thereby allowing you to move through gates and other objects.
Teslagrad really uses the retro style game design, especially when it comes to the boss battles. In these cases, you face on large enemies that display an attack pattern and have three layers. One thing to note in a game like this is that there is no health bar for your character. So one hit and it’s game over. Thankfully, you do have infinite lives and whenever you die, you’ll be respawned back in the start of the room you were in.
Overall, the levels are pretty decent but some of the boss battles, especially the later ones, offer a totally different degree of challenge that is significantly difficult considering that quick reaction is vital. This is especially relevant when the bosses can easily kill you with one hit. Towards the end, Teslagrad can be very frustrating when you’re constantly restarting your battle when you don’t even have the chance to figure out the new attacks that are being introduced. Since this game can be completed in a few hours, it can feel a bit short in terms of content, but the challenges themselves are satisfying, despite the possible moments of hair-pulling.
Graphically, Teslagrad shines very brightly with its artistic approach in the character and background designs. Whether on the TV or Wii U gamepad screen, the game looks mighty impressive. And during gameplay, the Wii U gamepad can be used for displaying the map while the TV is used for the action. This makes for a great combo that gives a great appearance filled with color and smooth animation. Unfortunately, the soundtrack is not as impressionable as one might hope to be. And since there are limited sound effects, especially with the absence of the voice acting, it can feel pretty empty and isolated.
Still, Teslagrad remains to be a challenging game that offers tons of fun and excitement. With plenty of content throughout the adventures that the featured character embarks in, this Nintendo Wii U title is worth the $15 within the eshop. You’ll definitely be magnified to its charm.
