Want an alternative to Diablo III? Torchlight II is your game!

While my map looked like this, every player will have a random design

A fun feature that will aid in subsequent run-throughs on new classes is that each area has a randomly generated layout. While a map will always include certain features like dungeon entrances, golden treasure chests, and champion-level enemies, they will appear in completely different locations for each new character. This is where the sense of exploration comes into play: even if in the last game a player found the dungeon in the southeast part of the map, now it’s possible that the area is a goblin encampment and the dungeon is in a completely new section. Overworld areas may also contain fishing holes, which start a minigame and award items for pets, and enchanters, who (for an increasing gold price) will bestow powerful permanent enchantments on player items. Some maps also contain seemingly random quest-givers who can be rescued for fame and a small reward. Fame, which is also awarded by bosses in dungeons and appears as purple numbers, grants one more skill tree point every time it levels up.

Soon enough players will arrive at their first dungeon. The dungeons available in Beta usually contained several champion level enemies (higher hit points, special attacks, and large sizes), as well as a final boss (with a ton of hit points, several stages, many additional enemies… and a huge treasure chest upon defeat). A wide variety of enemies also accompany the theme of the dungeon: a pirate cave I plundered, for example, had crabs, pirate ghosts, and pirate skeletons; a cave-like dungeon had slimes, bats, and spiders; and a crypt contained ghouls, ghosts, and more skeletons than you can shake a bone at. Some of the enemies had special characteristics: an enemy with a shield for example could block attacks until its shield was shattered, and some casters would throw down magic circles that would do damage if the player stayed inside them for too long.

Random loot is random. A Unique staff is useless to my Outlander... argh!

Besides the quests, dungeons served as excellent locations to find equipment. Many rarer pieces dropped off of champion level enemies, and the best pieces off of the bosses. These pieces were Unique (with a yellow name), and often comprised part of a set. Gathering all the set pieces would grant powerful set bonuses; but even without the complete attire the Unique pieces were usually top of the line. Another interesting feature about the gear in Torchlight is that it required either a specific level OR a high enough stat point. So a level 7 Outlander might find a piece requiring level 11 or 35 Dexterity; if they’ve focused on that stat, they can still equip the item earlier than other classes.

The graphics in the game fit the moods well, although they may come off as “cartoony” to some. The music, in the same vein, was appropriate but often forgettable; it would fit the zone but after I could never quite remember what it had sounded like. Several other features helped though; in some dungeons the majority of the area would be dark unless the player lit braziers or launched fire spells. And outside of the dungeon the weather and time would change; sometimes the plains would be bright and sunny, while other times I would be caught in a rainstorm in a darkened landscape. As mentioned previously, the game uses an overhead third-person view and it might have been the complete lack of control instruction, I could find no way to change the camera angle besides moving it closer or further away. This made looking around impossible, some enemies very difficult to target, and led to frustration in searching every nook and cranny. Then again I could just be really bad at finding out keybindings!

The weather on this pass changed to a snowstorm, and the day turned to night

The Beta test continued up to around level 20 or so in my Normal play through. Torchlight allows players to choose their difficulty in games; higher difficulty leads to tougher monsters and better rewards. While the best weapons I found in Normal around level 20 caused 150 damage per second, I’ve seen pictures of items from Elite that were twice that amount. My brief experience with Elite led to multiple deaths and despite being on a multiplayer server I never saw anyone else around. That’s an interesting factor as well: while the game can be played solo offline (well, it will upon release; during Beta only Online multiplayer was available), players can also create their own “version” of the game that others can then join. Elite might be tough solo, but by creating a new game on Elite and a 6 person limit, conquering dungeons becomes a piece of cake. Even better, bosses drop unique loot for each player – and if one receives something they can’t use, they can trade it to a party member. No arguing over loot? Sign me up!

Just as the story was getting good I hit the end of the Beta. Time to preorder!

To conclude, a lot of players will be wondering how Torchlight II compares to Diablo III. I can say that both are fantastic games, and each has its strengths and weaknesses. Diablo III is more story-driven, has beautiful graphics, and a highly interactive battle environment. It retails for $60, requires a constant internet connection to play, and features a controversial online auction house that uses real life money. Torchlight II is light on the story, perfunctory with the graphics and sound, and focuses more on the philosophy “Let’s improve the wheel, not reinvent it.” However, it retains the classic RPG element of fully customization of skills and statistics. It also can be played on or offline; it is a much smaller size (in Beta, I was downloaded and ready to play within half an hour); and currently it retails for $20 (plus if you preorder on Steam you receive the original Torchlight for free). The developers also promise Torchlight II will be modable, meaning players will be able to add their own features, areas, and even PvP combat. My recommendation is to try both if you have the resources; but if not, it’s up to the player to decide which features they value the most.

Paul "LockeColeMA" Cleveland, Staff Writer