Diablo II was a huge hit. At the time, it was a near perfect conclusion to the hack and slash action role playing game. After its release, people loved and played the game so much, it appears no one else had any ideas on how to improve and progress the genre. Apart from Dungeon Siege not many games even tried.
But now it seems the genre is making a come back. And it’s mostly thanks to the indie programmers.
Soldak‘s website might look a little amateurish, but don’t let that distract you. The games are high quality and very entertaining. Din’s Curse, the latest game, offers a highly versatile game world. And a world that continues on, even if you don’t (for instance, other NPCs might solve quests you can take too).
Torchlight is a similar game. Visually it’s a little more appealing and allows you to create teams. If you like Din’s Curse, you’ll love Torchlight and vice versa. Torchlight is available on Steam, where it is sometimes available for sale. If you’re short on cash, it might be worth waiting a little to see if you can snatch it at a discount.
It’s surprising that 2 indie developers release such high quality games around the same time, but you don’t hear me complaining. I guess the genre is really up for a revival.
And finally, if you really want a commercial off-the-shelf game, there’s of course Dragon Age: Origins. Apparently it’s really good.
It’s a good time to be a hack-and-slash fan.
2 Comments
Dragon Age: Origins isn't hack'n'slash. Look at the Diablo series and you'll see the difference between hack'n'slash and Dragon Age.
It looks like you're right. Apart from a few promotional video's, I hadn't really looked into Dragon Age (there are enough good free and indie games to keep me busy). Watching a few parts of a playthrough on YouTube, I don't see much hacking and slashing.
Thank you for that correction.