Brief a spell around an hour of time spent it may be, the most promising take-away from Teslagrad 2 – the follow-up to developer Rain Games' 2013 (yep, we’re talking a near-full decade here) Metroidvania – is the comfort that the sequel hasn’t come to proceedings with too much of an air of self-assurance. That what may have passed and worked in 2013, is sure to do so a decade on. That the ten year gap that, lest we forget, has spawned numerous fellow IPs and similarly-bold attempts to redefine what this subgenre can stand as. Not just in terms of structure and gameplay mechanics, but visuals too. Because while 2013’s Teslagrad might’ve seemed novel for its time, how many other games past, gone and in some cases vanished into the growing pile of imitator, have gone about this in familiar fashion?
Vague narrative with which is pieced together through collectibles and environmental storytelling, emphasis on the act of movement itself, visual aesthetic that combines modern and past techniques to form a kind of intriguing hybrid of sorts. Teslagrad wasn’t the first and only game to experiment with the 2.5D philosophy with its presentation. Let alone put the onus more on puzzle-centric gameplay, as opposed to non-linear forms of exploration. So it’s pleasing to see, again early these glimpses are, that Rain Games offer acknowledgment to the time passed and the ideas generated in the game’s absence. Teslagrad 2 may be resorting to its old tricks of magnetism and momentum-based puzzles, but alongside comes some new ideas that just may help the ten year wait for a sequel seem a tad more inconsequential.
The narrative set-up is, minute details aside, the same, though. A young Teslamancer – technological wizards if you will – finds herself retreating from a band of foes clearly wanting rid of her. Stranded in what can only be described as Nordic-influenced surroundings, a few early chase segments lead to the first major shake-up. No longer confined to primarily a tower to ascend, Teslagrad 2 in a way reverts to the subgenre’s more traditional template of spreading out its world horizontally. Villages, caves, sunken subterranean regions and other such ruinous parts are just some of the areas you’ll be exploring. And while there’s regions to climb/descend, the emphasis more on differing areas offers a glimpse into the sequel’s expanded scope. Areas you’ll be visiting and revisiting in your attempt to build up your abilities. Once again represented – and cannily so – by clothing and garments your character dons thereafter for the remainder of the game.
But while the sequel still confides in the 2.5D synergy of prior, the most visible improvement over the original on a presentation side is how much more depth there is to this world. Not to say the original didn’t find time to prove there were indeed three dimensions to its respective world’s space, but such moments felt like the exception rather than the norm. With spaces and corridors greeted not by a wealth of detail, but a mere wall pattern or texture. In Teslagrad 2, even in its more claustrophobic or at least contained sections, Rain Games' multi-layered backgrounds are a welcome sight to see. Even in parts you’ll sprint through by way of some momentum-based puzzle, you can’t fault the developer for putting in the extra work.
These more minutely-spectated changes extend to even something like the inclusion of a ground-slide. Much like its inclusion in a game like Metroid Dread, on paper it may sound pointless to even highlight, but in practice it’s one of those small inclusions that bolsters how well it feels to move about this game’s world. Which in some ways is a fortunate consolation given everything pertaining to the main puzzles and its primary premise of magnetism and electromagnetic abilities. Manipulating objects to reach and engage with other objects in a particular area, but more so, simply getting about the world. Catapulting one’s way to safety, deducing the correct time, let alone order, of interacting with either polarity.
To pull one’s self closer, or to push away, is the main question you’ll be asking. Sometimes in an attempt to slingshot one’s self across a great distance, in others working out when to switch from repel to attract so as to avoid a deadly trap. While most of these instances are executed sufficiently well – not least when the game strikes the right balance in not being too obvious on what it is the player is required to do – admittedly, the way Teslagrad 2 interprets its own physics can seem cumbersome and fiddly in parts. On top of the fact that most puzzles will likely take a few tries to even deduce as to what’s required, let alone succeed over, to say the more basic foundation via simply moving and platform-hopping isn’t the most satisfying to work with. It’s not terrible by any means, just don’t be surprised when a trip-up or failed execution on timing can feel like the game (or at least its interpretation on physics) is partially working against you.
And yet there’s one key consolation to such minor complaints. Teslagrad 2 remains fun to engage with, no matter the amount of attempts it takes to reign victorious. Occasionally questionable both its controls and physics feedback may be at spots, the primary magnetism-based puzzle-solving is still a treat all these years later. Puzzle design that’s dexterous and sufficiently varied, but more importantly respects a player’s patience and intelligence with working things out at their own pace. But it’s more promising to see Rain Games going at the sequel with not just more ambition, but too an understanding that the Metroidvania space has only grown in Teslagrad’s absence. The standards higher, the expectations more so; to stand tallest above this most crowded and hyper-saturated of markets in the indie space, takes something truly special and innovative. If nothing else, Teslagrad 2 isn’t resting on its laurels and just maybe that’ll prove enough. That its vision to be bigger, better and bolder – like any sequel should be – is so clear to spot in its opening hour or so is not just admirable, but effective on top. It’s been quite the wait for a follow-up, but it’s good to have Teslagrad back.
