Poll: Is Torchlight a Diablo clone?

[Xorph]

I recently read a review in an old PC Gamer magazine about Torchlight, and they talked alot about how while it had the same basic structure as Diablo, it wasnt a full clone, and that it added new aspects to the game. Well, all of the thing they listed as new were either in Diablo (such as gambling, where you buy an unidentified magic item) or were in Popcap's "Fate", which was another very Diabloey game, although it added things like a pet that could carry loot/ bring it back to town and sell it for you, fishing, and removing gems from sockets via a shopkeeper. All of the additions from Fate were listed in the article as new thing Torchlight was adding. So I want to know, do you consider Torchlight a Diablo clone?

 

[RollForInitiative]

Is it a clone? Yes. Is that a bad thing? Not necessarily. It sounds like they've gone out of their way to take some of the best elements of Diablo while spicing it up with a few new additions. Honestly, that's one of the best ways to approach design. Find what works and improve on what doesn't.

 

[AugustFall]

I think it's well established that it's a clone, which is fine with me because it offers everything I want from a diablo experience.

 

[ma55ter_fett]

no, a clone is a carbon copy, which torchlight isn't

[troll] a clone would be starcraft, which is obviously copying warhammer 40k [/troll]

you could claim that diablo is an ancestor of torchlight, but thats about it.

 

[Rusty Bucket]

Yes. I thought that was obvious?

 

[Diddy_Mao]

Yes, it is a Diablo clone, there's almost no rational way to argue otherwise.

It's a brilliant game and if you enjoy dungeon crawlers I'd have a hard time not recommending it to you but there's no point in denying that it's Diablo with a fresh coat of paint.
You can take Mickey Mouse, give him Orange pants and call him Ricky Mouse but nobody is going to accept your claims that he's a completely original character.

 

[Aidinthel]

*shrug* Pretty much. It's a very well-made clone, though.

 

[Eclectic Dreck]

Unashamedly yes. What's more, it is the first Diablo clone I've played that actually managed to capture that magical something or another that made Diablo fun.

 

[Borntolose]

Yes, it is a Diablo clone. But what's wrong with that? More of a good thing, right?

 

[strum4h]

Torchlight is quite fun. I play it to fill the gap between Diablo 2 and 3 =(

 

[The Procrastinated End]

Sure it is but thats not a bad thing, it's good to have something similar between Diablo 2 and 3.

 

[Skjalg Kreutzer]

no, a clone is a carbon copy, which torchlight isn't

[...]

you could claim that diablo is an ancestor of torchlight, but thats about it.

Torchlight is a carbon copy. There are a few new features (your pet, heirloom items for example) and a new visual style, but the gameplay and even the classes are basically ripped straight out of Diablo.

This is not a bad thing. Torchlight is a good game. Its good fun, and a well made game. It does everything it sets out to do, which is basically "be like Diablo, only with cartoon graphics." And thats cool.

 

[dekkarax]

If Torchlight should be called a Dialo clone, then Call of Duty should be called a Doom clone.

 

[TPiddy]

Yeah, but really... how much longer are we gonna have to wait for Diablo III? Like seriously? Actually... pets selling stuff kind of makes me giggle at the thought of what that transaction would look like. aside from that I have no problem with Torchlight. Solid experience at a solid price.

 

[HellsingerAngel]

Torchlight most definately is! It copied the playstyle. It copied the spell trees. It copied the item customization. It even managed to copy the dev team! =O

Seriously though, the dev team was majoritly comprised of devs that worked on previous Diablo games, so it stand to reason they'd want to use their tried and tested engine. Is it a bad game because of it? Hell no. I think it makes Diablo 2 obsolete! It does everything it can do, and it does it better. Not that Diablo 2 doesn't sitll hold a place in my heart (and Diablo for that matter), but it's time to move on to bigger and better things.

 

[StBishop]

Yes, it is a Diablo clone, there's almost no rational way to argue otherwise.

It's a brilliant game and if you enjoy dungeon crawlers I'd have a hard time not recommending it to you but there's no point in denying that it's Diablo with a fresh coat of paint.
You can take Mickey Mouse, give him Orange pants and call him Ricky Mouse but nobody is going to accept your claims that he's a completely original character.

Rickey Mouse. hehehe.

HAHAHAHAHA

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAAHAHA

I laughed.

I've not played Torchlight yet but I do believe it's on the list of games I need to get once my PC is fixed.

 

[Serenegoose]

Yeah, Torchlight is a Diablo clone. I'm pretty sure I've even heard the devs call it such. Hardly matters, though. It's a lot more enjoyable in my opinion, compared to Diablo 1 or 2, because it's far more slickly implemented. The pet to sell things for you is the icing, but the entire UI is much more functional - a spell bar instead of a single right click spell makes a huge difference, especially when it comes to not simply relying on a single move to tide you through the game because it's too fiddly to switch spells in really hectic combat.

 

[godofallu]

Dude the devs called it a Diablo clone, even boasting that many of them had worked on Diablo in the first place.

It is, but so what?

 

[Skjalg Kreutzer]

If Torchlight should be called a Dialo clone, then Call of Duty should be called a Doom clone.

Honestly.. That is both stretching the terms and setting up a straw man.

That said, Call of Duty has a lot of the same features as Doom. It is interesting how little that mold has changed. But Call of Duty is way, way more different to Doom than Torchlight is to Diablo.

 

[dekkarax]

If Torchlight should be called a Dialo clone, then Call of Duty should be called a Doom clone.

Honestly.. That is both stretching the terms and setting up a straw man.

That said, Call of Duty has a lot of the same features as Doom. It is interesting how little that mold has changed. But Call of Duty is way, way more different to Doom than Torchlight is to Diablo.

True. But I find the term "popular game X clone" to be derogatory, it just makes the "clone" seem devoid of it's own merits.