Torchlight (2009)

A charming and fast-paced action RPG, featuring several developers who previously worked on the Diablo series, which, at the time, was one of it's main selling points. It offers a familiar yet fresh experience, with intuitive controls, a loot-driven progression system, and highly accessible gameplay. Set in the mining town of Torchlight, you can choose from three character classes, Alchemist (mage), Destroyer (warrior) and Vanquisher (archer), delve into increasingly challenging randomized dungeons, at the time I choose to play as the Destroyer.

The game’s cartoony visual style and vibrant color palette give it a distinct personality, setting it apart from the darker tone of its genre peers. The soundtrack, composed by Matt Uelmen (Diablo, Diablo II), adds a moody and atmospheric layer that enhances the dungeon-crawling experience. One of the standout features is the pet companion, which can not only assist in combat but also carry items back to town to sell, streamlining inventory management and improving the game's progression pacing.

The story is serviceable but not a major focus, taking a backseat to the loot and action. Overall, Torchlight is a polished and addictive ARPG that delivers a satisfying experience, especially for fans of Diablo-style games. Its simplicity, charm, and replayability make it a standout indie title from its time.

Torchlight is a clone of the game FATE from 2005 but still manages to create its own atmosphere and feeling. In general, it is like any other Diablo based game. Kill enemies, collect loot, level up, get some mad skills and repeat.

It has a story, but it is not that interesting. Just another villain that needs a good slaying and who is waiting for you at the very depths of the game world in the story mode.

What makes Torchlight fun is the effortless way it is played. Use portals if you need to go to town or let your pet take the journey while you go on with your adventure, the combat system is good and when you hit an enemy you can hear the slash or bash you made with your sword. Also, the easy way of selling, buying, hot keys for potions and skills etc. makes it really comfortable.

Torchlight has simple cartoon style graphics and nice music to get you in the mood of playing. The sound effects are good and makes this game somewhat stand out from FATE and other hack and slash games.

The game can be very repetitive. Not because it is a hack and slash game, which goes for all of them, but because you progress in “floors” rather then levels or maps. The themes change after every ten floors, but the layout is mostly the same for all of them. After floor sixty, you reflect on your life and the fun is starting to decrease. On the other hand, when going for the achievements the game has to offer, it keeps you (or me at least) motivated to complete more and more floors.

The main issue I had with the game was, because of its repetitiveness, to find a good purpose to go on. There are achievements like I mentioned, but other than that, when you kill the boss in the story, it is just endless floors of the same stuff over and over again.

But overall, for the price, this is a fun game with hours of content.

I never got why people like Torchlight. There are a bunch of different Diablo-clones and this is the very worst one. Diablo II was great because it had fairly open maps, a wide variety of classes and character builds that allowed you to cleverly combine skills and items to great effect.

Torchlight has none of that. Instead it has only 3 classes that are rather samey. Maps are small and mostly linear. Half the skills are just awfully boring upgrades like "+2% magic find". Its cartoony style is awful and off-putting. The music sounds like a cheap imitation of Matt Uelmen.

And it's so boring. In Diablo there's some sense of danger even early on. It's completely absent here. Path of Exile, Grim Dawn, Victor Vran - they all have their own problems but they aren't boring. Torchlight is just damn boring.

I remember playing Torchlight 2 some years ago with my then girlfriend. It was enjoyable mostly because of the interaction. Torchlight 1 is fine and pretty much the same in many ways. With no multiplayer, though I found it too easy and repetitive. Dungeon after dungeon with essentially no meaningful progression.

Still, it's got solid mechanics and the stylised graphics hold up pretty well. Sometimes there's so much happening on the screen that it's impossible to tell your pets from your enemies.