The highest tier includes the gauss assault rifle which rapidly emits bolts of plasma streaking across the screen the ball lightning gun, which creates slow-moving, but large balls of electricity. I tend to think of the next tier including the Rapid Tesla Gun, which…rapidly…fires a line energy orbs in imprecise fashion the Tesla Shotgun functions like any other shotgun, except that it uses the same slow-moving energy projectiles as the Rapid Tesla Gun the repeating shotgun shoots in a burst of multiples like a machine gun and the gauss shotgun only fires twice, but pierces, with projectiles going through multiple enemies caught within its cone spray. On the bottom level is the sawed-off shotgun that shoots twice in a cone-shaped area before a reload is required, and a basic machine (Tommy) gun that is more accurate the closer enemies are. Additionally, higher tier weapons unlock as Tesla levels-up in-stage. Once something unlocks, it has a random chance to appear in every map. In fact, I should double back to say that the levels in Tesla vs Lovecraft begin in “easy” mode, progressively unlocking a new weapon or perk after every map, just like in Crimsonland. Poor Tesla begins with a meager pistol, but every map is balanced to begin a low-level weapon spawn. I would have liked to have seen more enemies like the Flying Polyps. Unless the extraordinary enemies appear, killing armies of Deep Ones and Spawn of Dagon can grow dull. The low-tier fishmen might be accurate interpretations of Lovecraftian exotics, but I do not find them nearly as exciting as the Shoggoths, which are also rarer. The Polyps emit a short-range, but ultra-damaging laser column, while the Shoggoths spew homing projectiles that orbit players in a circular pattern-only hiding behind an obstacle will dissipate the green orb of malice. Flying Polyps and Shoggoths round out the bestiary, and they are also the most grotesque, with tentacle and orifice counts exceeding conventional notions of normality. Tiny Spiderghouls try to surround and overwhelm with numbers, as do their cousins the Fire Vampire and Awakener-the former leaves a circular burn zone when they die, while the latter emits a slow-moving projectile. Spawn of Dagon serve as brute meat shields that like to “leap” and attack in straight lines, but in-game, this looks more like a dash or tackle. Deep Ones are the most basic enemy, behaving like the goons they are, walking to Tesla while slashing with their claws. I shall begin with the first element Lovecraft fans will recognize these names like a roll-call.

The padlock over the weapon in the bottom-left corner confirms this.Ī SHMUP is only as good as its enemies, weapons, and power-ups.

Content GuideĪfter finding an ideal weapon like the repeater shotgun, it can be “locked” with the “R” key, preventing accidental pick up of another (sometimes weaker) weapon. Quite simply, it appears that SHMUP specialist, developer 10tons, best known for Crimsonland, wished to geek it up by experimenting with these two pop-culture figures in Tesla vs Lovecraft.

Likewise, I have seen creatures inspired by Lovecraftian lore without knowing the source, such as the Mind Flayers of D&D-specifically, Baldur’s Gate 2. is a dark horse manufacturer as engineering shifts toward electric motors. As a fan of the Allies faction in Command & Conquer: Red Alert in the 90’s, I was jealous of the Soviet’s Tesla coil because Wikipedia did not exist in those days ( Encarta, anyone? Encyclopedia Britannica? Am I showing my age?), I had no idea that the tank-roasting defensive structure-or shock troopers-were based on the name of an actual person. Lovecraft and Nikola Tesla were relatively unknown figures at he turn of the 20th century, they had been gaining in postmortem postmortem popularity toward the turn 21st. A key mechanic is the Quantum Teleportation device, you use this item to escape intense moments such as getting trapped by many enemies.Although H. Each level you will be able to locate parts to assemble and enter the Tesla-Mech, a climb in Mech with a minigun on each arm to deliver devastating power to take down multiple enemies in very quick succession. the game is loaded with pure fast paced shooter action which can be fun and addictive. The game has you take on hordes of monsters using a variety of weapons and pickups, each level has a unique level design forcing you to adjust to each situation and avoid the monsters in different ways. That’s why I can’t love this game as much as I’d like to. Whilst I still think gameplay is king in video games, I think story is almost just as important. Character development wouldn’t have been a difficult task, as both the titular characters are famous historical figures and are essentially open for research. It’s quite disappointing as it could’ve been the games saving grace. The story mode is a missed opportunity in my opinion, they have a pretty wacky concept but don’t exploit it.

Tesla vs lovecraft reviews