Enough of the "Diablo clone" theme! New King has arrived and is stronger than ever!
What can I say, Torchlight II was one of my most anticipated games this year.The first Torchlight game was good enough to make me drool and wait for the next iteration and I have to say that it was well worth it.Where Torchlight was good, it's successor is better, where the previous installment was bad, it's offspring has improved.However,there're also areas that were as bad in the previous installment as they're now.Fortunately those are so insignificant in the grand scale of things in this great piece of a game, that you'll barely notice them or at the worst, adapt to them without raising too much of a fuss.
There can be mediocre games which can be ruined for good by one or 2 inconsistencies and there can be great games with same amount of irritations but those are being outpaced by far by a significant advantage of other goodies.Fortunately Torchlight 2 is being the latter and the fact that I spent most of my recent evenings playing this game until I couldn't keep my eyes open, speaks volumes.I can't even count how often I said " I'm coming ! " when all I wanted to do was just clean yet another dungeon instead.This game is like a magnet.It just won't let go.But that isn't to say that it's without flaws, because that'd be a lie and here's why.
Story :
I have to apologise to you that I can't nicely describe what the story's about because it's so shallow, that it's barely worth mentioning.Where in the previous game you had to look for an alchemist in a deep mountain, in this version, you also have to look for him but this time he's recognized as the bad guy, who influenced by the ember taint, is marching through the different lands, tainting them.His goal's to destroy a barrier between this world and Netherim, realm of ultimate evil.It should come as no surprise that you're delegated to stop him.
The problem with the story in Torchlight 2 is of the same nature as it was in the previous game.It feels shallow and secondary to your actions.Any quest, be it the main one or a side mission, is just another reason to get into a dungeon and kick the crap out of all the beings there.That's not to say that a weak story will lower the total pleasure you'll get from this game, because story is not what this game is known and loved for.If you're looking for a deep and involving story ala Dragon Age, turn away, it's not for you.
Graphics :
It should come as no surprise that this game's graphics are cartoony.It was to be expected, considering the previous iteration and different trailers,demo,screenshots.It's also not a rocket science to know that no gameplay footage will ever give you the realistic state of the game.That's especially true with the game's graphics.All I can say's that the visual quality of the game has improved.Where Torchlight's graphics looked too cartoony, too matte, too wow-like, torchlight 2 despite being cartoony, presents you with better surround lighting, better overall visuals and more blink.The unpleasant textures when zooming into your hero are still there, but the main difference is in the zoomed out view.The overall quality and aesthetics are just superior.
In a game with so much loot to choose from, with so many ways to dress your hero, it would be nice to actually see Age Of Conan's or Skyrim's level of textures applied to the gear.Cartoony graphics kinda removes the " WOW!!! " feeling when you watch your baddie wearing some legendary chest piece full of bolts, carvings and blink.In this game, the only " wow!! " moments I had, were related more to the item's stats, rather than looks and that's a damn shame.To each his own I guess.There will be people like me, who'll say " awww, that sucks man ", people who spend 5 minutes out of every 10 just looking at the gear the hero is wearing but there will be people who think that cartoony textures add to the flavour since it gives the game more warm and pleasant feeling.
Well, I personally prefer the dark fantasy theme.Demon's Souls, Dark Souls, Skyrim could be good examples of which textures make me drool.
You could ask me that since the story is crap and I'm not too keen on the graphics either, what the hell am I doing praising this game so much?Because it's the gameplay that made me glued to the screen.It's the gameplay that made my face look like I escaped from some scary asylum, with a drooling fish mouth.Yes, this game's gameplay is what it's all about folks!
Gameplay:
Really, I don't know where to even start.I haven't played a game this engaging in a very very long time.I consider myself an old fart in gaming terms and I've been criticizing the state of gaming for years now.The games started becoming boring, copy & paste templates of other games, games with bugs and day 1 dlc's, games that make me yawn after 2 hours if not faster.With this game it felt like I was back in the good old days,where I was playing from early morning to late night hours, with my mom interrupting my quest to save the world with some "stupid" request to take out the trash or to go to the kitchen and finally eat my breakfast at 12pm.The only difference this time was that the person calling me all the time was my wife and the reason was X-Factor or Pawn Stars at History channel.All I could say was " I'm coming " or " In a minute " and I would still be there, clearing another dungeon, killing another boss and his champions.There's so much satisfaction related to killing the baddies.Every melee hit, every hit of a fireball, every click of your mouse translates to an amazing sound of * spank *, * bash *,* splat *,* explosion *, * mayhem * sounds.You feel like each and every hit makes a difference and those mobs exploding, blood hitting every wall in the vicinity, the amazing mayhem caused by the AOE weapons, splash damage...it's all there.Each and every encounter is very satisfying and despite the constant flow of new mobs to kill, it never feels boring, it never feels like a drag.Even more...you want it to never end.You're getting addicted to it, to seeing how the bad ass boss explodes from your 10.000 critical hit and the silence at the end, when it's all gone....the feeling of a job well done.Pure awesomeness.
What adds a significant part to it all is the awesome loot that drops everywhere.Like in the previous game, Torchlight 2's a loot whore's heaven.There'so much loot that it's overwhelming.White gear,green,blue rare,orange unique and purple legendary.You can form many different sets of blue's, orange.The more parts of the same gear type, the more additional bonuses you get.I must say, that it's very addicting to say the least.Always looking forward for the champion or main boss encounter and hoping for a legendary drop or an unique drop.
BUT...it's also where I have to criticize the inventory system...
For this amount of loot, the inventory is definitely way too small and it surprises me that one can't even buy additional bags, expanding it.I mean, come on! so many weapons, wearables,gems and this tiny inventory for it?I know I know...there's always your pet that you can drop it onto and send him away to town for massive sale but it still takes him 2 minutes to do that and I'm too scared to fight without him, so I'll have to wait for him.Ok,ok, I exaggerated but you know...It's like having a car with this super big engine that burns 30 litres of petrol per 100km and at the same time having a 20 litre petrol tank for it.It just doesn't make sense!
Apart from smashing baddies and collecting loot, what's also worth mentioning are things like:
1) Fishing - As cool as it was the first time around, this time it's gotten a small tuning since now you have couple of different fishing ponds to choose from.You can fish in a regular pond, in a promising one or in magic one or even in a secret one.The difference between them is that depending on the pond, you may get better rewards and I'm not talking about fish only.You can get some nice,powerful and unique pet items or even items your hero could user.
2) rich skill system - the skill system is so massive that you will need those 100 levels and couple of playthroughs to know each and every skill there is.You can invest in passive skills that are constant and active abilites which you can activate each time you decide it's the best moment to do so.
3) 4 differen classes which allow you to play 4 times and still have a unique experience.
4) Presence of dungeon maps - What a great feat! - Once you finish the game for the first time, 2 additional vendors appear in the city hub.The cartographer and the vendor that allows you to begin a new game +.You can buy a massive amount of maps which once activated, they present you with a randomly generated dungeon to explore.All I can say about those dungeons and the whole random dungeon generator is that they feel much distinguished from those in the first torchlight.They feel more detailed, the placement of tables,rooms,stairs,mobs feels better thought throughout.They don't feel as generic as the ones in the previous iteration and aren't as much of a chore as they were.
5) Option to start a new game + - Another great feature significantly lengthening the playing experience.I ended my first playthrough at level 54 and that's only half of what you can achieve.So it's over 100 levels.Multiply that by 4 classes.Add the fact that the average gameplay should last about 25-30 hours and do the math yourself.Extreme replayabilty and considering that this game's worth only 15 quid, extreme value for money as well.
6) Option to choose from a number of different pets as opposed to just one previously.
The mini map hasn't changed that much and can be an annoyance if it's visible in the middle of the screen but once I set it up so that it appeared in the upper right corner, it was guiding me nicely.
It's also worth noting that visiting each and every part of each land/map is very rewarding.From a mysterious golden chest to which you need a right key, through a unique ghostly creature, killing which opens a portal to a different realm, that provides you with a challenge that once completed, rewards you nicely.
There's also multum of different bosses,champions running, killing which rewards you with FAME points.Fame points is an additional leveling method that is strictly related to finishing quests and killing bosses and champions.Where each normal level gives you 5 points to invest into strength,dexterity,focus,vitality and 1 point in your skills, each fame level gives you an additional skill point to spend, so looking for as much bosses and champions as possible is desirable and gives you the opportunity to further enhance your hero's stats.
Audio :
Music in game is very nice and reminds me of diablo 2's soundtrack.It plays in the background and is never interfering with the gameplay.It's never irritating either and adds to the overall climate.
Final Thoughts:
Wow, what a great game I've had the pleasure to play.I haven't had so much fun for ages! If you're a fan of hack&n slash games, if you think that diablo franchise was godly and if you're disappointed with diablo 3, then look no further!This game is pure awesomeness and I can say that without doubt, it's the new hack&n slash king on the throne.If cartoony graphics doesn't put you off and if you're not expecting to delve into a life altering dialogue experience, this is a game for you.Forget about titan quests and other diablo clones out there.Torchlight 2 is the game others should be referring to from now on.Yes I think the moment has come to say that we should start comparing future games from this genre to Torchlight 2 and not diablo and I'm really happy to witness the change of times.Am I a heretic for saying that? Well..I've played diablo in the past and as much as I liked it, I still prefer Torchlight 2.It's hard to say that but this game has almost no flaws and that's something most of the games can't say about themselves nowadays.Job well done.You can't go wrong with this title.
Now back to my new game +...Apparently there's more bosses to kill somewhere and who knows? Maybe this time I'll get lucky and get my hands on that first legendary chest piece.Who cares it's not in ultra beautiful textures? I just want it!rnHail!