It's been a solid fix while I was waiting for the next Diablo installment, but it cannot rival the original. Still, Torchlight is a good game for less-than-hardcore fan who wants a few mindless slaughter sessions without paying major bucks. It's also godsent if you want to hook your preteen kids up on the genre. :)
Those who expect the sequel to match its fabled predecessor are for a big disappointment. The game stinks. The storyline is still fascinating but feels nowhere as "close and personal" as that in the first game. The gameplay is stunted, resources are overly abundant, challenging parts are few and far between, and the whole game can easily be finished in a few hours. Buy or stay away, $3 price tag makes it a flat choice.
There were, are, and likely won't be any game of comparable storytelling and role-playing quality. My only complaint is that the game is a wee too easy, combat-wise.
This fantastic game is what Heroes of M&M should have become, instead of a dreary 3D slugfest with as much sense behind it as Mario arcade. Graphics is exactly what strategy gaming fans expect it to be, which is sharp and distinctive without visual overload. Do yourself a favor and get this game if you already haven't!
This game is inferior to its groundbreaking but "mundane" original, which is Panzer General. The mechanics is solidly inherited, which is a plus, but 3D is about as vital to the game as glitter to chess. Many missions are counterintuitive and feel unnatural, and AI capabilities are often substituted by hordes of grunts thrown the player's way from unpredictable directions, often with a lame "explanation" following. Those who are in love with the stellar brilliance of Panzer series AND enjoy the fantasy twist will like the game; others, not so much.
The first Witcher used to be a great game, intelligent and thoughtful, if at times frantic, but the second installment is completely off the hinge! It is just too fast-paced! Those craving an RPG with an occasional element of real-time fighting should not even bother. The subtleties of a wonderful storyline are totally lost between frantic cutscenes and awkward combat interface (with pretense for "realism") even before you reach the end of the tutorial (!!) chapter. I will not begrudge $45 to CD Projekt - the game could be good behind this mess - but alas, it goes off my hard drive.
