i never played the first Torchlight, but the second one about to be released seems to be eagerly awaited. Did I miss out on not playing the first one and should I be getting the second one? Discuss.
The first one, to me, was like Diablo lite. Great graphics and fast and furious action, but somehow not as deep. If you can get teh first one for cheap try it out. It's a fun few houors of hack and slash.
Quote from: Barthheart on September 03, 2012, 07:26:10 AM
The first one, to me, was like Diablo lite. Great graphics and fast and furious action, but somehow not as deep. If you can get teh first one for cheap try it out. It's a fun few houors of hack and slash.
They are giving it away for free if you purchase the second one! So...
Two for the price of one!
8)
I liked Torchlight and found it a bit different that Diablo or Diablo 2. It has a bit of "old school" to it but also has some nice OOMPH in the form of skill planning and character advancement. It may be an aesthetic thing, but people are fairly polarized about the Torchlight vs. Diablo discussion - and many prefer Torchlight for the low cost and high gameplay factor.
If you like those sorts of games, you can't go wrong with TL2, really.
Quote from: son_of_montfort on September 04, 2012, 11:13:08 AM
I liked Torchlight and found it a bit different that Diablo or Diablo 2. It has a bit of "old school" to it but also has some nice OOMPH in the form of skill planning and character advancement. It may be an aesthetic thing, but people are fairly polarized about the Torchlight vs. Diablo discussion - and many prefer Torchlight for the low cost and high gameplay factor.
If you like those sorts of games, you can't go wrong with TL2, really.
I enjoyed it, too. Cartoonish graphics, but you have a lot more freedom in how you customize your characters. Even within different classes, you can choose different themes and skills to play them pretty differently. The most specific thing is that you get different weapon and attack types, which do different damage types--cold attacks slow whomever you hit, lightning/fire/acid attacks hit multiple enemies, fire attacks burn, poison attacks do lingering damage, etc. That lends itself quite well to different play styles.
It's not a revolutionary or game-changing system. But it was a nice light-hearted dungeon romp that I enjoyed. And it costs less to play the game SP for perpetuity than most MMOs charge to play for 1 month...
This is supposed to be released tomorrow (Sep 20) from what I see listed at all the sites.
Between this, AJE, GW2, FTL, that Bard's Tale throwback I got on the indiesplurgethingy (Devil Whiskey), etc etc .... aaahhhh!!!
I think we need to start living on Venus time, where a day is actually about 117 of them.
More time plz!
;D
Actually...it releases today. :P
Installing now. This and AJE were my top two releasing games. If someone wants to play multiplayer just ping me on Steam.
It's Live! Going in for some hack, slash and loot gathering!
Torchlight (first one) is part of the humble bundle 6. You get steam keys for a $1 or more purchase. A few dollars more to add dustforce.
http://www.humblebundle.com/
First 1 1/2 hours of gameplay and its pretty damned sweet. Blizzard should be embarrassed about Diablo 3 compaired to this game.
It's installed...and it's going to sit there until I'm done with Borderlands 2.
Don't resist the urge to play. The gaming water is awesome. Everything a hack and slash should be and done the right way.
Just hit download on it now. Too tired to play yet dammit. Falling asleep at keyboard. >:( Need hack & slash fix soon..zzz
Damn it. Hooked.
You all like it better than Diablo III?
I liked D3's darker setting, but TL2 is without question a better game at least that's my first impression.
Here are some screenshots:
My Ferret and I prepare to take on the world
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi830.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fzz227%2FBison36%2F2012-09-20_00001_zpsf9eb3e77.jpg&hash=4d35e976d7998b8981df4abf836dc20c69389930)
Me killing something or other.
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi830.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fzz227%2FBison36%2F2012-09-20_00005_zps0c3a5544.jpg&hash=cd038bf74e7055ca226c9466092351195782e26b)
How about some pop culture:
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi830.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fzz227%2FBison36%2F2012-09-20_00008_zpsa583e65a.jpg&hash=e1f739d5c41a6a413032fc40332f6f9da67ceb09)
And of course a reference to one of the greatest movies of all freaking time:
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi830.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fzz227%2FBison36%2F2012-09-20_00010_zps8f668f50.jpg&hash=2a83def96f3d9d18c60d497f5e93f7fd1f2cb6ba)
Quote from: Bison on September 20, 2012, 10:02:30 PM
And of course a reference to one of the greatest movies of all freaking time:
But.. are you referring to the "Bring Out Yer Dead" reference, or the "One-Eyed Willy" reference??
Too many references! :P
This is a great game, especially for $20.
I'm still not sure about the dungeon/wilderness layout situation, however, because I've not seen a big dungeon yet in my first six character levels (albeit I still think the randomness is better in this one). It's still too early for me to tell how deep it goes.
I'm happier with the graphics in this one, compared to the first. It's not quite as goofy and childish, even though it uses the same style. It's just a bit more grim, perhaps. Anyway.. it's an improvement too.
Interface is better. I still have some problems trying to steadily target monsters with ranged weapons, just like the original, I just use a liberal amount of the 'Hold Position' hotkey. I remap that to one closer to the ability hotkeys so I can hammer it regularly to stand still while attacking. Note that the secondary hotkey setting for Hold Position is bugged and doesn't work so change the original if you need to do so.
I'm already seeing a lot more item variety yet they've managed to lower the hordes of scrolls and such loot, it seems, so you'll have to horde your ID and portal scrolls more than before. I think that's a good thing because I had been getting so many of those, in the first Torchlight, that I'd be selling them constantly (made it too easy).
There are more regular quests than before, I think, but don't expect some fancy storyline. This is still an hack & slash which is exactly what I want. It's also isometric (not 1st-person!) which is how I like 'em.
Overall it's a nice improvement and barring a short playtime (such as D3's 18hour campaign!) it's very much worth the $20 price for anyone with an action RPG itch.
Hmm...a little cartoony, I agree.
I'd like to subtract a point just because Steam's buggy software regularly infuriates me.
Like the numerous games in which it tries installing DirectX drivers every f'ing time you start a game. Between that, and a couple other bugs I've seen, I still loathe Steam. I don't think they'll ever properly fix these issues if they haven't by now. >:(
Quote from: Nefaro on September 21, 2012, 07:35:47 AM
I'd like to subtract a point just because Steam's buggy software regularly infuriates me.
Like the numerous games in which it tries installing DirectX drivers every f'ing time you start a game. Between that, and a couple other bugs I've seen, I still loathe Steam. I don't think they'll ever properly fix these issues if they haven't by now. >:(
If it's trying to do the pre-install stuff every time, shut it down and restart the client. If that doesn't fix it, verify local file integrity.
My big question with the game : is it as repetitive as the first was? It became a bit of a slog through the exact same environments fairly quickly in the original.
Well I'll need to log a few more hours, but 4 hours in and its all good. I haven't even really begun to do the numbers with skills and such. Just having fun killing baddies and getting loot. I'll be interested to see how much a second play through varies monsters/dungeons/loot from the first one.
Quote from: Arctic Blast on September 21, 2012, 04:41:23 PM
If it's trying to do the pre-install stuff every time, shut it down and restart the client. If that doesn't fix it, very local file integrity.
My big question with the game : is it as repetitive as the first was? It became a bit of a slog through the exact same environments fairly quickly in the original.
Thanks, I'll try "shaking the handle" a bit.
The first
Torchlight was pretty repetitive for me, too. It seemed to have all the pieces for me to enjoy it (minus the proper graphics style I suppose) but there just wasn't a lot of variety added in to the mix. So my play sessions would only be maybe 30 minutes to an hour before I got sick of it.
This one, however, has a different feel to it. The two sessions I've had with TL2 were two and three hours, respectively, and they would've ran longer if I had the time. ;D It's a big difference from the first.
And the graphic style is just a
bit better in this one too, even. The most concrete example I can see is in the armor styles. The ones my embermage character have found often sport skulls, claws, and hides along with helmets that look like aforementioned skulls or something you might see a mass murderer wear in a B-film. It feels just a bit darker despite still having the cartoony textures. Probably another overwhelming fan request.
Since my (earlier) early impressions, I've become more satisfied with the procedural maps. They feel bigger, and definitely more labyrinthine, than D3s. And also looks to have more randomness all the way around, including mob, boss, and dungeon placement. After the first 'area', the outdoor maps start getting quite large and regularly packed with random dungeons (about 2 levels plus a boss level is the biggest I've hit thus far) and groups of monsters and/or bosses. Only time (and some replays) will tell just how much more random content is in this one but it's looking good thus far and, frankly, D3's biggest issue is it's limited content.
They've managed to
keep all the good stuff from the original, and add
more to it in every way, yet not try to re-invent the damn thing like so many companies do with sequels by ditching old likeable features and adding new ones that aren't so good. I could be saying this early (depending on campaign life-span mostly, I think) but I get the impression that the devs pretty much just listened to their customer base about features they wanted in #2 and used that as the main plan of attack. It's certainly made the game more enjoyable to me than the original and I'm hooked whereas I wasn't with the first.
Okay, sounds like it isn't the 'been there, done that' monotony that the first game was. And since that was my only real complaint about the original, that settles the fact that this game will get it's hooks in to me at some point. ;D
I also forgot to mention that the available abilities are different from the first, too.
There is still no tree, so your only limitation is level-based. Lots to mix & match into a skill set, even between each classes' three different styles. Each individual ability also has 3 tiers so you'll get some extra bonus (or bigger) effects on the each one you concetrate in. The classes and their abilities differ enough to be interesting, and there is plenty reason to make multiple characters of the same class due to all the combinations.
I'm not sure what the level cap is. Anyone?
LOTS of friggin' loot. I've noticed an interesting weapon property too, with the implication that you can level it up by killing so many of a specific monster type. Dunno the details of that, though.
The random map generation is very good. I'd compare it to D2.. only larger and with more random dungeon entrances once you get past the first zone. LOTS of mini-bosses. 8)
It feels kinda like I'm playing Diablo 2 again, but with a number improvements but minus the diablo-esque bloody art style. I did just see some man-like things with tentacles coming out of their heads/hands/feet which was kinda cool. A little of that "Antedeluvian" Lovecraft style (he certainly loved using that word). And with the tentacles.
I love this game. Just started a bezerker on my laptop to play while watching football. I'm finding the melee slightly easier to control than the ranged combat. Its not that ranged is bad, but really more of a need for me to rekey hotkeys to make them more convient.
Nefaro I like that 'hunting' dynamic you describe above...getting certain weapons for killing certain baddies. Sounds cool.
Damn you all now I am growing interested...
Quote from: Gusington on September 23, 2012, 02:28:42 PM
Nefaro I like that 'hunting' dynamic you describe above...getting certain weapons for killing certain baddies. Sounds cool.
Damn you all now I am growing interested...
Me too....I bet I buy by end of the day:(
Its a much better game to play solo than D3, which is the way I like to play my hack and slash. Alone, unafraid and gathering lootz for myself!
I will play some multiplayer though just to check it out and get better lootz~
Quote from: Bison on September 23, 2012, 01:06:09 PM
Its not that ranged is bad, but really more of a need for me to rekey hotkeys to make them more convient.
As I said, using the default attack on ranged weapons is a serious pain in the ass since the hotspots on mobs just don't seem to 'catch'.
I dunno how many times I've tried to fire a pistol/bow/whatever while pointing at an enemy, while it's highlighted and actually showing that I'm pointing at it, and yet my character will start walking right into melee range with said character I was attempting to shoot from a distance. This was also a problem with the original TL. So I gotta use the "Hold Position" hotkey constantly. Diablo and other ARPGs have done this better, although it's still a good idea to keep that hotkey at the ready.
I just remapped mine to the 'D' key, then mapped 'W' to the "Move To" key (helps keep you from having to constantly hold down the Left Mouse Button to Move - my carpal tunnel thanks me LOTS), and basically put all the spell/weapon switches and Quick Potion hotkeys around the WASD area. It's much better, and I'm glad they added the whole key remapping section this time around because the first one didn't have it & I had to jack around in config files to do so. Once again.. listening to customers.
For $20, you get the same (or more) fun out of it than you can with the $60 Diablo 3. And what looks to be more replayability too.
There are firearms in Torchlight II?
Quote from: Gusington on September 23, 2012, 07:35:18 PM
There are firearms in Torchlight II?
Yes, it has some steampunk stuff in it too.
HOLY CRAP...can you give a slightly more detailed description of the steampunk stuff you've encountered? Type slow :)
Quote from: Gusington on September 23, 2012, 07:38:29 PM
HOLY CRAP...can you give a slightly more detailed description of the steampunk stuff you've encountered? Type slow :)
It's the usual steampunk stuff in a mainly fantasy-focused RPG.
The weapons you can have are pistols, rifles(?), "shotgonnes", and cannon (literally). The Engineer class has a tab full of skills that create various robots and automated turrets. The Outlander class is primarily a ranged style with numerous skills that require either 'gonnes' or bows to be used. There are some steam-robot types of enemies here & there, too.
I take it you have never played the first one, then? It had this stuff, too, although not quite as much variety (as with everything else).
I've got an outlander (he uses a bow and dual "black powder" pistols) and a bezerker. I really dig the charcter options in this game. You are offered a much wider range of options on how to spec your character than Diablo 3. The best part is that so far all the skills seem to have an actual play purpose. None of the bs from D3 where you activate a skill for .3 seconds worth of effects. I hated that concept.
I think I'll end up re-starting my Outlander because I think I over spread my skills. I just wanted to see the various effects so I put points into far too many. Where as my Bezerker I've specialized in a few as I level up and am much slower to add new skills. It seems to be working out much better so far.
You do know you can repec your skills in town, right? Don't restart your Outlander. I think the respec guy has a weird circle thing about his head.
Yeah but its only the last three points that you'd spent. Unless in later chapters there is a full respec, in which case that would be the way to go.
Well, that's sort of crap. I thought it was a full respec.
Well so far I'm into act 2 and both towns it's been a last 3 point spent respec. I'm not sure the level cap so it might not matter in the end. I will say that skill builds have a pretty big influence over the type of gear your looking for much more so than D3. Makes the hunt for lootz a little more fun and interesting.
The pattern I'm seeing on dungeons so far is that they are for the most part 2 level dungeons w/ a 3d level being the boss room for the main quest line. The random dungeons are 1 or 2 lvl dungeons. I'll admit that I was hoping for some deeper dungeon delves, but on the brightside they are pretty big dungeon levels with a nice mix of puzzles, monsters and maze elements.
My frame rate is getting hammered badly on some of the larger battles. Not sure what is the exact offender, but when you get a bunch of smaller mobs w/ the boss I think the sure number of particle effects is what is causing the slow down. I need to mess around with the settings (it might be my gpu), but I need to stop hacking and slashing and do the testing.
No I never played the original...engineer class?!?!
Gus you owe it to yourself to play torchlight 2.
Just the classes alone sound original and kick ass. The only thing that stops me is the art style. But I suppose if you can get over that I can too.
I actually don't find the art cartoonish in game. If you are compairing it to Diablo, the major difference is that Diablo is set in a darker environment. The other difference is that Torchlight 2 doesn't take itself too serious. I mean yes there is a main story arc, but it has a lot of silly light hearted references like Goonies. Diablo 3 attempted to create a meaningful story, which was great IMO the first play through. After that you just skipped the cut scenes and story be damned. It just doesn't propel how a hack and slash is played. There isn't really a role playing aspect. It's about designing a character around a skill tree and then attempting to equip to best match that skill set. Also the Torchlight 2 evironments are just more expansive with more variable events. Random dungeons, phase portals and such. Diablo 3 just does not have the same randomization with regard to dungeon and open areas.
I am finding this a lot more fun than Diablo III which i haven't really played much.
Quote from: Gusington on September 24, 2012, 06:28:08 PM
Just the classes alone sound original and kick ass. The only thing that stops me is the art style. But I suppose if you can get over that I can too.
You'll get past it.
You know you want this. Yesss.
Quote from: FlickJax on September 25, 2012, 03:09:28 AM
I am finding this a lot more fun than Diablo III which i haven't really played much.
And welcome to the cantina FlickJax. I was wondering if you'd ever migrate this way.
I'm trying to figure out how you farm old areas, because it doesn't seem like you can. In Diablo for example everytime you start up the game, the zones are repopulated. That does not appear to be the case in Torchlight 2. Hmmm...
Quote from: Bison on September 25, 2012, 04:16:53 PM
I'm trying to figure out how you farm old areas, because it doesn't seem like you can. In Diablo for example everytime you start up the game, the zones are repopulated. That does not appear to be the case in Torchlight 2. Hmmm...
Which is really quite good! :)
Its not a huge issue and it makes every drop a little more special esspecially at harder difficulties, but you are almost force to "farm" for set pieces across several characters.
Yeah perhaps, about the set piece farming. Although I've had far more luck actually making sets in TL2 than any of the other ARPGs. The key is to regularly check the town vendor as it seems to stock matching pieces, to sets you're currently wearing, more often. It helps that the Sets are handled like other item bonus stats, and not as uniques.
Well there is a work around to the non-respawning if one wants to go back and farm areas for loot or what not. You need to create an internet game and click on the reroll world box. This repopulates everything and rerandomizes your worlds. Supposedly you are still on the same quest after the reroll. I haven't tried it yet. Not sure I'm going to either. Just throwing it out there FYI.
I've hit a gear wall I think. I was just running and gunning, but now i need to try and size up an encounter and pick off some of the trash monsters before going after the bosses. I like the difficulty and it's picked up nicely toward the middle of ACT 3. Not the Diablo instant death insanity just a good smack around resulting in death if you aren't paying attention to your surroundings. Good shiznit.
I think Runic Games has nerfed the set item loot drops in the last few patches. I'm not seeing them in the town vendor or drops as often as I was before. But I also think that once you get past level 20-25 or so, the drop rates fall and the fights steadily become more difficult. The fight difficulty increase is nice, but I'm not switching out for better equipment near as much after passing level 30.
Tip: If the beginning of "Normal" difficulty seems too easy, just stick with it for awhile and see how it is halfway through when things start ramping up. I've actually started dying at around level 34 or so. ;D I was worried, for a time, that I'd have to start over on Hard if it didn't push me enough.
Multiplayer?!! If anyone feels like smashing fugly faces & looting shiz, look me up when I'm on sometime. My Runic Games nick is Nefaro, but I've linked that account with my Steam one so I believe if everyone has done the same, we can also import from Steam friends list. Sounds like more trouble than it really is, but it wasn't a hassle at all. ;)