TORCHLIGHT REVIEW Posted by nutcrackr on Nov 9, 2009 03:20 (91 days ago) |
Torchlight is a modern action RPG that holds an uncanny resemblance to Diablo at a budget price. Indeed some of the developers for Torchlight were in the original Diablo team. None of this is probably as evident as the music you hear when you first start up the game. The guitar strumming will bring you back to the days roaming Tristram. Torchlight is a dungeon crawler featuring progressive loot, high action combat, skill based gameplay and some interesting level design. The game is in 3D but observed from an isometric perspective, the levels are randomized and the replay value is very high. The game has three classes each playing a little differently but are based on archetypes you’ve seen in other RPG games. Within the classes you can play a few different roles based on a selection of great skills you choose to upgrade as you gain levels. Torchlight is the type of game you can pick up and play for as little or long as you want, allowing you to save your progress anywhere. I found myself trying to go a little bit further to finish a quest only to find hours had passed since I started playing. What probably sets this game apart from Diablo is the high frequency combat that has a great feel to it. But the game still holds some striking resemblances to the famed action RPG.
 Great design of dungeons, minions and spell effects. There are many familiar enemy types and even some similar dungeons that have come back possibly to haunt players of the Diablo series. There are obviously skeletons, zombies and large spiders and even the familiar floating swords return. There are casters type creatures, an enemy that seemed quite similar to the succubi in Diablo, and a dragon akin to the Balrogs. Even the general flow of level types is somewhat similar to Diablo. You have dungeons then caves and then some lava levels along with treasure rooms, lecterns for scrolls, and shrines for magical bonuses. There is even a town portal system and a waypoint system that opens up gates to key points during the dungeon crawl. All this familiarity is a very positive thing; the Diablo games were great because of the creatures, setting and basic gameplay mechanics.
Torchlight isn’t a carbon copy of Diablo though because the style in particular is quite different. The art design is more cartoony but still with that hint of darkness creeping through some of the levels or creature designs. They actually managed to get the balance pretty right in the graphics design. Due to the high action it would feel a little out of place if the design was too dark or depressing. Items in your inventory now take up one slot which can make them harder to distinguish but it does make inventory management a little less frustrating. Your inventory is now shared with your pet that can make a run for the town of Torchlight to sell your goods. This basically means you can just keep fighting over and over and still pick up items without needing to return to the town.
 Maybe if I ask nicely these killer bat creatures will let me pass I played mostly with the Destroyer class, offering me up close melee action with some high defensive and good attack skills similar to warrior classes of other games. On Normal difficulty immediately you notice that you’ll be fighting a lot more monsters at once, spiders, goblins, trees, bats and even fake treasure chests all like to crowd around you and attack. Some enemy types will run away if in danger and some will be aided by bigger enemy types. Many of the skills however for the Destroyer are suited to just this scenario, stampede for example charges toward enemies and knocks them back doing significant damage. Stomp will clear the surrounding area close to you also knocking monsters back and doing some damage. These skills are designed to just get in amongst many enemies so you can make full use of what bonuses they have against groups. There were a few times where I, my pet, or minions got stuck behind the environment or chests, but this was generally rare. On Normal the game starts quite a bit easier than most other action RPG games, but it’s designed to be more about enjoying the high intensity combat. Higher difficulty levels are available with a hardcore mode, but normal seemed fine toward the end.
|
 |
Comments |  |
