It was the first appointment that I made, even before I was confirmed for E3 this year -- that's how excited I was to get the chance to play Torchlight II for myself.  In my household we have two versions of Torchlight, one for the PC and one for the Xbox 360, but neither would allow us to play together.  The new game features the same Runic charm to a much larger world, and allows you to bring your friends along for the fun.  

In addition to sporting massive new levels and open world adventuring, Torchlight II also will introduce a new playable class, the Berserker.  Most importantly for us lady gamers, you can now roll both male and female versions of all playable classes.  I chose myself a female gunner decked out all in steampunk armor, and jumped into the gameplay dungeon feet first.  Combat is definitely more challenging in Torchlight II, which is a good thing as far as I am concerned.  It makes sense that the dungeon play scales with the addition of new players, because who would want to play a game where there was no challenge?  Speaking of challenge, there are some rather beastly minibosses in the game, some of which spawn in the open world now making for some interesting exploration moments.  Yeah, I died a couple of times, I'm ashamed to say, but I had fun doing it.

By far the most enjoyable thing about Torchlight II is the LAN multiplayer.  This is huge for an RPG lover, since we are social creatures that thrive on group interaction.  Getting a chance to  wander the frozen wastes with a friend was wonderful, and I'm greatful to Runic for adding this to the game.  It's still the Torchlight you loved, but now it's bigger and better -- in more ways than one.  See for yourself when the game drops in for LAN play at your place this July.