Torchlight

⭐ 7.5/10 - A Solid ARPG Experience

Torchlight is a fun, action-packed dungeon crawler that feels like a lighter, more casual take on Diablo. Developed by Runic Games, it features a charming art style, addictive loot-based gameplay, and a surprisingly deep pet system.

Pros:
✅ Satisfying Combat – Hacking and slashing through hordes of enemies is smooth and enjoyable.
✅ Great Loot System – Tons of weapons, armor, and enchantments to experiment with.
✅ Companion Pet – Your pet can fight, carry loot, and even sell items in town!
✅ Mod Support – The game has a strong modding community that adds new content and improvements.
✅ Runs on Almost Any PC – Even older machines can handle it without issues.

Cons:
❌ Repetitive Dungeon Design – The levels start to feel samey after a while.
❌ No Multiplayer – It’s a purely single-player experience, which is disappointing for a game like this.
❌ Shallow Story – The narrative is basic and forgettable.

If you're looking for a straightforward, loot-driven ARPG that doesn’t take itself too seriously, Torchlight is a great pick. It’s easy to get into and offers plenty of hours of dungeon-crawling fun. However, if you’re after a deep story or multiplayer action, you might want to look elsewhere.

Verdict: A solid choice for casual ARPG fans, but don’t expect a masterpiece.

This game came out at the perfect time, when Diablo 3 was taking forever to be launched. I didn't have the patience to finish it then, but I'm trying again, after many years.
It's a fun game, easy to play, with clear classes, not too many item types, and the pet addition is a nice touch.

Torchlight is a nice and somewhat cute timekiller, perfect to spend an evening mindlessly clearing a dungeon after a hard day.

Problem is that as a game, it is extraordinarily boring mess of grind, poor gameplay design choices, dull skill trees, dull champion/boss fights and a difficulty "curve" which looks like jigsaw line. I completed it on the hardest level (Very Hard without permadeath), and wouldn't waste my time on this ever again.

A mix of Diablo 1 and 2... but with many quality of life improvements AND without the need of shilling out money to a company that firmly lies in a long list of hated game companies.

That's very much oversimplifying it but still.

Torchlight is a simple and solid Dungeon Crawler, held back by a lack of QOL aswell as an atrocious difficulty spike in the later part of the game that killed the enjoyment for me.
Despite some hiccups, Torchlight is still a really fun budget title. I recommend it on a sale. The only thing that would complete this game for me is if it had multiplayer, but Torchlight 2 has it, so maybe you'd want to pick up that one instead.

Love this classic game

Decent and fun diablo-type game, but a lot easier to get into. Was one of the first games I ever played and it's nice to return to it after so long.

I loved the game growing up and to this day absolutely love it. It's simple, to the point, and fun to play. 10/10 hack and slash dungeon crawler. It ticks all the boxes. 100% recommend.

I remember having played this game when I was a younger and wanting to try it again... I've played a lot of ARPGs in my time and this game just isn't good, not with the lots of other games there are nowadays and that were there even during its time. I didn't go into it with wanting to dislike it, but have not really found many things to like, or at the very least enough for me to like the game, enjoy my experience, and give it a positive review.

I'm not a fan of the graphics, but that's always been the least important aspect when it comes to games for me, but I can't believe this game is from 2009 judging from... well, everything. The graphics didn't age well (looks like a cheap mobile game), amount of classes (3?!), mechanics, skills and skill trees (every class has 15 active and 15 passive skills), loot (a lot of trash drops) and the controls and combat - very clunky, I tried playing a Vanquisher (kind of a Rogue/Marksman class) and the ranged attacks usually either didn't even connect or only had range for about half the screen.

I'd have expected the game to be at least 10 years older than that, everything just feels so lackluster and jank for its time. If it were, I wouldn't have been so harsh with the review but simply put, there were games that were miles ahead at the time - Titan Quest or Diablo II, which lo and behold, are still very good and playable to this day, even in spite of being older.

There are some nice ideas, like the pet, being able to send it back to town to sell your items. If only the inventory wasn't 3x7, while also having to carry scrolls and potions, making it at least 4 slots smaller. Other than that though, the pet is just basically a way worse and dumbed-down version of the Diablo II mercenary. The only other "good" thing about the game is that you can mod it and the mods don't disable steam achievements, at least the ones I installed. This would be good if the base game itself was good and if some mods just didn't feel mandatory to make the experience less painful.

Now if we move on to the cons, other than everything already mentioned above, there is no respec, why? Yes, there is a mod for it, but still. There were games before its time that had this mechanic, so why does this game not have it?

I am playing in very hard softcore and the game still feels very easy regardless of that, which brings me to the balance being very poor - still remember my first death, which was to a trapped chest dealing over 50% of my health in a zone 5 levels below me, while literally every single other trap I've triggered dealt about 1/10 of the damage of this one, pretty much not even moving my health bar. I just don't get it. On top of that, the monster damage on very hard gets absurd very quickly, even before completing the story you're gonna start getting constantly oneshot with very little counterplay, unless you're of course kiting around half the map and standing half a screen away from the mobs.

This game didn't bring anything new at the time that would be meaningful and worthwhile enough to mention. Unless you're going into the game with extremely strong nostalgia, can't recommend. It is cheap though, so I'll at least give it that.

Torchlight is a pretty simple but fun game. Its not as complex as other top down RPGs, but solid if you just want a good time

Cozy ARPG for fans of Diablo 1

Should play well on almost all systems

Awesome basic dungeon crawler. The RNG is super random, which sounds dumb, but you'll know what I mean if you start playing it.

Awesome story, good themes and a nice chill experience! All in all, double thumbs-up 👍🏻👍🏻

Old school fun

This game is super good, until you get to the end. one of the last zones, before the final boss, is awful. This game starts off like any good ARPG... you are weak, pathetic, and then slowly but surely you open more methods of attack and unlock better equipment and skills. You get to a point where you feel strong, both offensively and defensively, and then you take your first step into one of the last zones...

And you die. Instantly. To enemies that, when they appear on screen, charge you immediately with such force and power that you will die... immediately... to just 1. This happens so quickly that you will likely find it impossible to dodge them. This is such a ridiculous, unnecessary feature to the game. It is an artificial ramp up in difficulty to try and shoe-horn in a BORING ASS DUNGEON GRIND. This game does NOT have enough variety to make ANY grind enjoyable. There are literally only 4 zones, and each level in each zone looks exactly the same. That itself doesn't bother me, because the game isn't that long, but wtf? Really? I HAVE to GRIND this DUMB SHIT?! eat SHIT.

This game SUCKS ASS.

Thank GOD Torchlight 2 exists. Torchlight 3 is even better than this game. I would hazard a guess that even the new reboot Torchlight is probably better than this.

This game has aged very well. A spiritual successor to the Diablo franchise between games 2 and 3. Solid Mechanics, easy enough to get the hang of for both new and seasoned players. I don't have anything bad to say about this title.

"What if diablo 1 was remade and it was way better in literally every single way except the graphics are generic cartoon instead of realistic, dark, and gritty?"
There you go, that's this game. It's really good, but be warned, play it on, at least, the hard difficulty, normal is waaay too easy

Fun game that doesn't require a lot of angst to progress (at least on easy). Hack and slash dungeon crawler with enough variation to keep things fun and not too repetitive. I do wish there were more story to investigate, but it is a fine way to kill time.

Worth the sale price if you're a fan of the genre, although the sequel probably does everything better.

pretty fun, cartoony arpg.

In 2025 I think it holds a niche of being a simple, lightweight, offline arpg that plays well on a Steamdeck.

light and fun, have dog roaming around spamming heal

It might have been good in 2009, but it has just not aged very well.

Pros:

* Simple, intuitive controls
* Fun animations, nice character models and armor/weapon models.
* Fun skills with interesting combat that'll keep enemies coming and dying.
* Charming environment, artstyle and music.

Cons:

* 99% of item drops are trash and drop too frequently. You'll end up heading to town every 5 minutes to clear your inventory.
* Quests are repetitive and get boring almost instantly. They are all of the type "go into this dungeon and collect X item" or "kill X monster in level 7". All of the quests are given by the same two NPCs. Even Fate had more variety than that.
* Fishing is a brain dead minigame and while turning your pet into a creature is fun, it is never made clear what creatures are vulnerable/strong against other creatures.
* Pet, minion and fiend pathing is abysmal. My pets and minions were constantly getting stuck or would stop fighting if other monsters blocked their path and they were in "move to" mode.
* Pets and minions sometimes miss their attacks because the attack animation fails to complete before the enemies move away. This makes pets and minions half as effective as they should be, and honestly made one talent tree for the Alchemist feel like a complete waste. Once I noticed this issue, I had to roll a new character.
* Gems are too few and far in-between to make gem combination relevant. Also, gems on armor feel like a waste.
* Talent trees were given a formidable try, but still fell flat from expectations. One big issue I see here is that you get one point per experience or fame level increase, but you can put up to 10 points per talent, meaning you'll be spending a long time maxing out one good talent, and in turn, not getting to explore the rest of the tree, making the gameplay feel somewhat monotonous.

Overall, I feel like Torchlight is a re-skin of Fate, but with downgraded mechanics and somehow less inspiration.

Fun but dated.

Superseded by Torchlight 2, which is basically a better version of the same game, so play that instead.

Best game ever

Good Dungeon crawler with nice modding support with tool.

While 2 is better, this one still has charm as a simple ARPG. Mods help the experience greatly.

A great game for its time, but even back when it was released, it didn't do anything extraordinary that other ARPGS weren't already doing. I won't give it a negative review, because it is still a well put together game that does most things right. You will only be disappointed if you're expecting a fresh take on the genre. It didn't even do that in 2009. Torchlight was just a well timed release because of the drought of this type of game at the time. Most of the games mentioned below came in post 2012 other than Titan quest which was 2006.

If you're looking for a cheap ARPG to play with a different story, Torchlight 1 & 2 are decent enough. Somewhere below Path of Exile 2, Diablo 4, Titan Quest, and Grim Dawn. On par or better than Diablo 3, Path of Exile 1, and the Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing, Take Torchlight for a spin during a lull, just don't over-hype it in your mind.

Look, this is a good game and for the price it is well worth it.

The graphics are great, the the story is decent and it is quite playable.
It is one of the better dungeon crawlers/hack slash/button mash RPG's with tons of loot etc.

But the game is basically a copy of Diablo and it comes no where near it in terms of play-ability & fun.

Will you enjoy Torchlight, yes, is it worth the price tag, yes, but don't expect it to "wow" you.

I love this ARPG so much. It's simple, easy, and extremely replayable. Pick it up and just jam for 4 hours. You will beat the game. You will mildly enjoy yourself. It's nothing special but it's so much better than the spreadsheet trash (POE, ect.) that exists out there today. Try this game! You don't need autism to enjoy this ARPG.

Torchlight 1 is still a good game, despite what everyone says. The gameplay is solid and still offers amusement, and it's a good buy, especially if you don't want to spend a lot of money.

Doesn't run on modern machines. Tried half a dozen fixes for Windows 11 and no luck.

It's a well made game, but there are so many other better ARPG's out there nowadays, like I don't mean to be harsh but like... why would you play this over the sequel, for example?

There's three classes, barbarian, bow and arrow girl, and the fucking twit with the magic stick.

All of them play relatively the same after a while though, a lot of the upgrades aren't that significant beyond being stat increases, and there's hardly any variety when it comes to the enemies or the areas; heck, there isn't even multiple areas to explore, the game just kinda has a hub area that serves as the camp you've seen in any other ARPG, and then there's a big cave that just goes on and on and on... after a while that cave turns into a dungeon of sort, but that's about all it goes for variety sake for the first hour or so.

It's just... so much of this genre has been perfected over multiple games, both in gameplay, presentation, heck, even story... as if story was something that most players really wanted out of this ARPG, I mean, from what I know most players of these types of games don't really care that much about the story as much as for the gameplay.

So overall, I was just left a tad bit disappointed by it? I was expecting a more basic Torchlight, and that's exactly what I got, but there was nothing here to keep me going, I just kept thinking about a whole bunch of other ARPG's that do this but much, much better.

Fun game with Diablo 1 vibes.

WOW is this game not fun

Was my first proper foray into the point-and-click style top down action rpg genre. The rpg/leveling and gear systems were easy to get the hang of but still very flexible and fun to play around with. Would recommend for people wanting to grt into the genre. Also nowadays really easy to run on old laptops/computers. Fun game.

While on modern standards Torchlight is janky it's still a decent experience.

This game has such low pc requirements that you can probably play it at 120fps on a Samsung fridge.

Almost as good as Diablo 3.

Torchlight is an enjoyable action RPG that delivers a solid and engaging experience. Playing as a Destroyer on Hard difficulty felt appropriately challenging, and the game's art style and atmosphere were impressive for their time, adding to the overall appeal.

While not as deep as Diablo II, Torchlight has a charm of its own. The loot system kept things interesting, and the main quest provided enough variety without the need for extra farming. The difficulty ramped up steadily, especially around Floor 32, which made for some memorable moments. Though experience gain could feel a bit slow, the progression was still satisfying, and the final battle with Ordrak brought everything to a fitting conclusion.

Overall, Torchlight is a good game for anyone who enjoys action RPGs, offering a laid-back yet engaging adventure that's well worth playing.

Torchlight is a Great Diablo Clone.

it's alright

In the days before Torchlight 2 existed, I suppose this was fine, but those days are far behind us. The quality of life and quality of combat is improved in nearly every way in the sequel. So, alas, I cannot recommend the original.

good old school game

Love it. Old school. Relaxes me. Loving farming gem upgrades.

Great alternative to Diablo II

This game has a OG Diablo feel since it was created by former Blizzard staff.

Nice relaxing minimum thinking type of game

A great old-school but new graphics hack and slash to the bitter end! Tons of fun for serious and casual gamers alike!

This game used to be available on the XBL Arcade.
That is when I first played it.

I've always felt Torchlight managed to fit a whole lot of game mechanics, into a game that didn't need it.
I do believe it made the game GREATER and granted the ability to grow a player base over the years.
But certain aspects can be confusing.

Even after your first play through, you're not going to fully understand everything unless you take time to research.

Regardless, I am just complaining about the game being too good haha.

9/10 Would recommend

Very good ARPG. Been a fan of this game before it was on steam.

Wasn't gonna review but seeing a mixed rating on such a classic game makes me sad. Comparing a 2009 indie to 2024's ARPG-scene is just dumb af.

Rest in peace, Runic Games.