In my first look review of Torchlight I gave it high praise! Well in truth I have to take that back and give it even higher praise. For a team of 25 people Runic created one hell of a game. Yes its single player only but its still one fun game. With the toolkit coming out shortly this game will only get better as the community gets its hands on all the wonderful stuff Runic is handing out. Recently Runic released all the models in the game so people with 3DMax can get a head start on making more baddies. Be warned this review has some minor spoilers. Basically if you don't want to know skip the next paragraph.
The story to this game is up there but plain. You stumble upon a little town called Torchlight and they are looking for help with the troubles below in the Ember mines. Ember is a special magical stone that’s is valuable in the world of Torchlight. You run into Syl, an wizard of sorts who understands Ember, and Brink, a treasure hunter,right outside Torchlight on your way to the mines. Syl asks you to run after Brink and make sure he doesn't get in over his head. Oh boy does Brink ever get in overhead. Next thing you know you are being corrupted by Ember and Master Alric, who is Syl's mentor. The story goes you have to find a way to prevent yourself from being truly corrupt and then how to save Master Alric from something bigger and more powerful than himself.
Once you complete the story you are free to continue playing the game in a randomly generated dungeon. As you all know by now Torchlight is a Diablo clone so just running through the dungeon smashing creatures and finding loot is a big part of the game. And this game has loot! Tons of loot! So much loot they give you a pet to help you hold it all! Besides just holding some loot your pet can run back to town and sell it for you. So no downtime in the smashing and looting of the mine's bad guys. If you need more help feed your pet a fish and it will transform into some badass monster for a short time. If you still need more help give your pets some spells. I suggest you give him some summoning spells that way you will always have some help as you explored the depths of Torchlight.
Graphics and Sounds fit this game perfectly. I love the cartoony feel to the game and works very well. Everything is done well and blends in. There are at last count 7 different type of themes for dungeons and with the upcoming toolset I'm positive there will be many more themes coming. The biggest issues I had was all the monsters got old after a while. There isn't much variation in them and for harder guys they just made them bigger. Though I was pleasantly surprise when I got to the dungeon level 26, I think, to see brand new monsters to fight. This did spice it up more and was needed just at the right time. I will have to say the Dwarf kingdom theme was my favorite followed very closely with the goblins lava/fire theme.
For replayability you have 3 different classes to pick from and you can even past items on to each other and your own descendents. First you have the Destroyer which is big tank character. Equip him with some big ass sword and get him in the heat of the battle. He has a bunch of close range AOE talents and can make short work on big baddies in short order. Next you have the Vanquisher, who is rangerish type of character. She is skilled with a bow and some close combat fighting. Good thing the game has the ability to switch weapons very quickly. Finally you have the Alchemist, this is you mage type of character. He has a bunch of talents from summoning help to shielding himself if it gets busy and he needs time to get off some awesome killing spells and powers. Also this game doesn't need a powerful computer to play and for those you own netbooks it even have a netbook mode option. Perfect for those time when you are traveling.
If you don't have this game yet get it. Its $20 on Steam. I don't want to hear your sorry excuse that it doesn't have multiplayer, who care this game is still fun playing alone. Besides buying the game now and enjoying a wonder piece of art you are supporting Runic as they make their MMO based on the same world and style which is a still a few years off. Also once you get your hands on the toolset you who knows you could make something that catches Runic's eye and you could have a job making great games. So again buy this game you will not regret it. Besides you need something to tie you over until Diablo 3 comes out.
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