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Torchlight III first launched in early access on Steam back in June, and I thought it was a bit of a disaster. It had numerous issues left over from its original MMO design, no singleplayer mode to speak of, and a general sense of lag to its gameplay that made it less enjoyable to experience compared to its two lauded predecessors.
I didn’t think that developer Echtra Games would be able to turn the title around without some serious and lengthy re-development. But, to my surprise, they’ve done that and more! In only four short months they’ve radically overhauled the game and released new versions this week on the PS4 and Xbox One. It’s available now for a price of $40, and it’s coming to the Switch next Thursday, Oct. 22nd.
The list of changes made is gargantuan, so I’ll just hit some of my personal highlights. The game now has a true singleplayer mode that doesn’t require a constant server connection, alongside co-op multiplayer. The feel of the game is much snappier regardless of mode, and in a brilliant move, difficulty choice now affects movement speed of the enemies. The skill tree system has been redesigned, bringing it more in line with the classic system featured in the earlier games. Performance is faster all around, with improved framerates and much faster load times.
Most importantly, thanks to a million small tweaks, this game now feels like a fun action RPG, with the satisfying player feedback, large enemy encounters, and constant movement/attack/skill loop that some of the best examples of the genre have to offer.
Players choose from one of four classes in Torchlight III, and each one offers something different. There’s a ranged Sharpshooter, the melee-focused Railmaster, the jack-of-all-trades Forged robot, and the complex Dusk Mage. The robot is the most fun to pick up and play from the beginning, because it’s equally effective in melee range and from a distance, thanks to its powerful weapon abilities and large chest cannon. The Dusk Mage feels the most ornate to me, with its dual magic affinity system encouraging players to use a…
