Torchlight II Previews

Should you be on the lookout for some new PAX-based previews of Torchlight II this weekend, you don’t have to look any further than Gaming Nexus…

Torchlight 2 is a deceptively deep point-and-click adventure, with all the hallmarks of the genre: piles and piles of loot, 4 player classes to choose from, and sprawling maps connected by hub-towns, each with a different theme. But simply describing it doesn’t do it justice: this is, in all fairness, a pre-alpha build, with two whole character classes not yet revealed and level designs/numbers not yet finalized, and it is still one of the most fun point-and-click RPGs I’ve ever played.

There were two playable classes on hand at PAX: the Outlander class, a marksman-style ranged character, and the Railman, a melee character who pounds enemies with a giant hammer; the character designs are heavily steam-punk influenced, and Torchlight 2 will also feature character customization, from gender to hair-style and color. Having tried both, the play styles are different even if the mechanics are the similar: you point and click to attack, right click for a special attack, and there are a variety of other powers and spells that you can bring to the battle. The difference becomes more apparent when you incorporate one of the most important new features: multiplayer.

…and DIYGamer…

Finally, as with the original game, Torchlight II will ship with the complete engine that the game was made on. This means that the entire game will be modable. You can create new weapons, maps, dungeons, skills, and even new classes should you decide to invest that kind of work. The tools the developers are using right now to create the game will be the same ones you’ll have access to upon the release of the game ensuring that the game has an active modding community attached to it.

Torchlight II is destined to be another smash hit so long as Runic can keep up with the same level of polish that the first game had. Overall, and this is from Max himself, the game is roughly four times the size as the original game, which means you’re not only getting a meatier game willed with features lacking in Torchlight, you’re also getting a much longer game.