I had forgotten just how much fun I had with the original Torchlight. It was (technically it still is) an action-RPG, a little twitchy, massive loot drops, a fun story and a diverse cast to play through with. Now we get Torchlight II which improves on the formula, but doesn’t take away what worked in the original game.
A new hero is needed, as the events of the first game have taken a turn for the worse. The original hero has become corrupted and fled, and while evil was thought to be vanquished, it has indeed returned. This allows for a tweaking of the class system in Torchlight II, with four very different classes and skill sets to work through. Four different classes, and within those separate skill trees (or paths or whatever) make for a nice take on the various archetypes in role-playing games.
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Torchlight II offers up a touch of steampunk with the traditional RPG tropes. This creates a wonderful blend of familiar and new for the gameplay. It would be easy to dismiss the game as using steampunk as a crutch for lack of imagination, but that’s very far from the case. Actually, what we do get isn’t shoehorned, doesn’t feel arbitrary, and meshes nicely with the world that is established.
Mana is used for magic-based and other special attacks. There are plenty of spell scrolls to be found and used. Weapons deal damage, both ranged and melee, and now we get not only swords and bows, but pistols and portable cannons (among so many others). Shields and armor are of course present as well. Each class has a “charge meter” which fills up over time as players hit their enemies. This will cause more damage to be inflicted.
And the pets – available at the start of the game a few different options are available. not only do they act as an aid in taking down enemies, they can go back to town and sell loot as well as purchase a few necessities, such as health potions. Pets have 3 settings, offensive, defensive and a mix between the two. Then there are fishing holes scattered throughout the land where players can collect fish, feed them to their pet and get various attributes associated with that pet for a limited time. And pets get in on the loot with tags and collars as well.
Armor comes in individual pieces which can be found as loot or bought, and then at times there will be various sets to be found. Finding all the pieces to a set will offer different sets of bonuses depending on what the set is and how many pieces are worn. Then there are enchantments as well as the gem sockets available in many pieces offering further enhancements.
Where the original Torchlight felt like an endless maze of a dungeon (and for the most part it was) Torchlight II offers a few different sprawling areas to explore with various dungeons spreading out from there. Of course there is the main quest, but optional side quests are there as well. Take the side quests. You’ll need the experience.
Experience, as with most RPGs offers points to distribute between skills and abilities. Do you want to focus on dealing more damage or on defensive capabilities?
Torchlight II offers up co-op play either LAN based or over the internet. Enemies are scaled to the difficulty, and there’s support for up to 6 players. Online co-op RPG action for 6 players in a regular non-MMO RPG? That’s really good. And there there’s the modding, which I won’t go into at all but it’s there, and that opens up the game a whole lot more.
So, what’s wrong with Torchlight II? Not a heck of a lot. The voice acting can be a bit rough at times, but even games at twice or triple the price haven’t been able to consistently deliver in this arena. A few more side quests might have been nice. Still, there’s almost always forward momentum going. The graphics aren’t going to push any limits, but I can run Torchlight II as well as several processor intensive programs simultaneously, dropping in and out of some RPG action as my schedule fits.
Most important, Torchlight II is fun in an addictive sort of way. Playing through the game with a different class and different style of play is well worth it. At $20 Torchlight II represents some of the best value you can get for your gaming dollar.