Like the previous three games, it tells much of its story through live-action full-motion video sequences, and features freely explorable 3D environments during gameplay.

Tesla Effect's gameplay has been described as very similar to Under a Killing Moon, The Pandora Directive, and Tex Murphy: Overseer.

The story starts as Tex suddenly awakes disoriented in his office at the Ritz Hotel with strange markings and signs of violence on his body and no memory of the past seven years.

In so doing, Tex uncovers a web of intrigue involving murders, double crosses, and the lost inventions of Nikola Tesla.

[3][5] In 2008, they regained the rights to the series and characters,[3] and, around the same time, founded Big Finish Games,[6] which would employ several key figures from Access Software.

This iteration of Project Fedora was pitched to have live-action video cut-scenes, fully 3D environments, and multiple story paths.

The fundraising goal was set at $450,000, to be supplemented by $300,000 supplied by Big Finish, for a proposed budget of $750,000 (minus fees and fulfillment costs).

[14] Principal photography commenced in February 2013, and took place in a newly furnished studio in Big Finish's office in Salt Lake City.

Tesla Effect was almost universally hailed as a faithful sequel, with much of both the game's praise and criticism hinged on its steadfast adherence to the conventions of the genre and series.

What it does attempt – and successfully accomplishes – is to mark the comeback of a beloved adventure gaming icon, and to do so in a way familiar to legions of fans".

Unlike previous titles, the game's script was adapted from the novel, written by longtime series scribe Aaron Conners.