Let’s face it, dungeon crawlers, or whatever you want to call them, are all about the loot. There’s nothing quite like a level 10 Epic that’s actually useful. Not once did I feel like I had to do something I didn’t want to because the designers thought I should, I just played. There’s really no need to go back to town at all if you don’t want to I went through the first three acts without having to make any maintenance trips back to town. They can also pick up other essentials like potions and scrolls in case you’re running low. Just like in the original, Torchlight 2 characters are given pets that act as mules, carrying and selling loot back to vendors while you keep playing. There are no taxes in Torchlight 2 every second is spent doing the things I want to do and not the things I have to do. I don’t mind when this is a gameplay feature like in Fallout when it can add to the game’s survival theme, but when it’s added to a game like Diablo it feels like a cheap trick designed to keep people playing longer without making progress. When I say taxes I mean all of the things required by the game to maintain the gameplay or your character for the sake of “balance.” Usually they take the form of either a fee, like buying skills or repairing gear, or a time sink, like excessive traveling or backtracking. Torchlight 2 doesn’t just hold its own against Diablo 3 in some cases it’s flat out better. While everything about the game screams that it should be a $60 title the only thing that doesn’t is the price tag. They’ve kept their price low at $20 not because their game isn’t as good as other $60 titles, but because, as they say, “Not everyone has $60 lying around.” It’s really for this reason alone that I’m surprised at how enjoyable Torchlight 2 is compared to its more expensive cousin. They seem keenly aware that the key to any successful game is a happy, active, and robust fan base. Runic’s inviting Torchlight 2 atmosphere isn’t a happy coincidence of good game design, but a deliberate tactic designed to create a larger community.
That first day, for both games, really summed up each overall experience Torchlight 2 invites you to play with a smile and open arms while Diablo 3 invites you with a scowl and a cold shoulder. Two hours after loading up Torchlight 2 I was already level 5 and had acquired a fair amount of loot two hours after loading up Diablo 3, however, I was sitting on my couch wondering when their servers would be stable enough to play. While both had their share of release day problems, Torchlight 2’s didn’t stop me from sitting down to actually play the game. You know how they say that first impressions are the most important? Well, there’s really no better way to show the differences between Torchlight 2 and Diablo 3 other than to compare each on their first day of release.
0 kommentar(er)
