Torchlight is a famous RPG from Runic Games. Born as an unknown, he has managed to win over almost everyone through a very complete game that satisfied the need for a âHack & Slashâ RPG for PC for all of us waiting for Diablo III. Although it is not surprising that these guys know what they are up to when making an RPG since two of the founders of Runic Games are Max Schaefer and Erich Schaefer, co-founders of Blizzard North, creator of Diablo I and II, which as you already know, is probably one of the best-known RPGs in the world.
In this analysis we will always talk about the version for XBLA, which is the latest platform for which Torchlight has been released. It has been available since March 9 for a price of 1200 Microsoft Points to download.
But, have they been able to transfer the PC control to the Xbox controller satisfactorily?
Torchlight puts us under the control of a hero who arrives in the city of Torchlight. We are offered 3 possible classes for said hero: The Destroyer (Warrior), The Alchemist (Magician) and the Vanquisher (A kind of Amazon/Thief). All of them, as you can see, are typical characters from a role-playing game. At first we are not offered any characterization, other than choosing a name for our hero, and selecting which pet accompanies him (dog, cat or dinosaur).
In principle, the charactersâ powers are not very different from those known to fans of this type of game, although they have a technological touch due to the environment in which Torchlight takes place. For example the alchemist will be able to summon robots, and the Amazon can shoot guns.
The characters will differentiate themselves as soon as we get into the complex skill system, similar to Diablo II, but more complete, in which we have a large tree with possible skills with different branches to follow as we level up. In addition to that, we also have the typical statistics (Strength, Magic, Health, etcâŠ) in which we must invest the points we earn when leveling up.
The story is quite simple, below the city of Torchlight, there is a very deep mine from which ember is extracted (The essential mineral in Torchlight). The problem is that the corrupted form of the mineral is corrupting the beasts that live in said mines, and just when we arrive at Alric City, a very famous adventurer is corrupted by the ember, bringing out his most evil side. Therefore we will embark on an adventure with Syl, trying to save Alric, who is his teacher.
It seems incredible that this game was released for PC, since the controls on the controller are perfect: we can assign a magic to each button or trigger, and we will use the right stick to zoom in or out. In general, the controls are very good, with special mention to the potions that are assigned as we collect them to the right and left âbumpersâ of the controller, so we will always have them at hand.
As we advance, or rather descend, we will find different types of monsters in the mine. In each level there is a ladder going up and a ladder going down, and normally there are several mini-bosses with their own names who will drop more objects than normal. Generally we will have to face quite a few enemies before we can descend to the next level.
Throughout the main story, there will also be 3 other NPCs who will offer us missions on different levels of the mines, such as collecting a special item or killing one of the aforementioned mini-bosses. These secondary missions will be optional but normally we can complete them along with the main mission.
Approximately every 5 levels, there will be a Boss this time much harder than the previous ones, which usually gives us a lot of work to finish him off. These bosses and the previous mini-bosses will be our main source of equipment. And this is where the game becomes a complete vice. The equipment they throw at us will be categorized by colors that will determine the quality of said equipment (A system similar to that established in WoW). Such equipment is randomly generated by the game each time an enemy is killed, so perhaps your new armor has +50 health but +2 magic, and someone elseâs armor has +10 magic and +40 health.
To make it even more complicated, we will only be able to see the equipment that has fallen to us with an identification scroll, like in Diablo. In addition, there are ember gems that we can socket into our equipment and enchantments that will improve our equipment with a risk of destroying it if the enchanter fails. As you can see, the possibilities are endless, and this is what makes the game hook you at all times**.
The only thing missing is multiplayer, since it only contains to lengthen the game an infinite dungeon that can never be finished (they are levels created randomly with material from other levels) in which we can train our character after finishing the story mode, with 3 NPCs that will give us missions. Even so, the duration of the game is very good and in difficult mode it can last us about 7-10 hours depending on our skill.
Note
- Presentation: Its setting is very careful and generally the team models are very successful. 9
- Graphics: The graphics are colorful, the animations are good and the magic is colorful, itâs amazing to fill everything with blood when killing a demon. 8.5
- Duration and Engagement: The story mode lasts about 7 hours, we also have an infinite dungeon to continue playing, and 3 classes to master, for a price of 15 euros, it is a great purchase. 9.5
- Final Note: Runic Games know what they are doing. One of the arcade games that has hooked me the most lately. Careful in all the details, it will delight all fans of the RPG genre. Itâs a shame that it doesnât have multiplayer so you can get together with your friends to explore the infinite dungeon. Perhaps the best XBLA RPG. 9