Customer Reviews

Titan Quest Gold (Titan Quest and Titan Quest Immortal Throne)

5 star:		(25)
4 star:		(18)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

The game is billed as an action-RPG. The number of NPC's is limited, the game is relatively linear, save some sidequests that are optional but not exactly secret since every NPC with something important to say has an exclamation point above their head. You start the game as a single hero (or heroine as is my preference) with nothing but the tunic on your back. You only get to chose male or female, no races, classes, or even differing appearances (except your tunic color). The reason I gave it four stars for an above average game is the beautifully rendered ancient worlds. If you love ancient history this game is even more fun, but even if you don't, the graphics are great. Also they have a Mastery system that is innovative and allows you to choose two separate Masteries (second at level 8) to customize and diversify your character. You can use many different weapons and are not restricted based on your Mastery but rather your attributes, (a weakling will not be wearing heavy armor, etc.) This game is all action, there is no running errands around town for this guy to get that information etc. which happens often in RPGs (I love that kind too, don't get me wrong!). You go out, kill lots (lots, seriously) of enemies, build up nice and quickly, then talk to some guys, then go out and kill some more. You can find tons of items, some ordinary, some magical, some rare and some legendary. You also can make artifacts by collecting ingredients and recipes and taking them to an enchanter.
A few more pluses, some Mastery skills allow for summoned "pets" (wolves, elementals, etc.) to help you; skill points foolishly spent can be reclaimed and reallocated with the help of a mystic and some cash. If your inventory gets a little full and you don't want to sell certain items there is a helpful caravan driver where you can store stuff and buy more room if needed. I am a fan games like Baldurs' Gate, Neverwinter Nights, etc. so this game was a departure from that more in depth style of RPG, but I still found it fun and the price was right so I would definitely recommend it for some stress-relieving hacking action.

I am not much on games usually. My husband wanted to try it out as it sounded interesting. It is as much fun to watch him play as it is for me to play myself. Creating characters with different attributes and combinations is spiffy. Even for the novice player, it is not very hard to pick up the concepts of staying alive and moving forward. I have a terrible sense of direction so the map is a lovely thing to have so I don't spend all day wandering about and retracing my steps. The game is addicting so it helps to keep a clock handy. We don't play online with others so I cannot speak to that. I do like this one tho.

Great game. Huge replay value. Create a Spirit/Nature character and find an item that a Warfare/Defense character would love? There is a transfer vendor who moves items from character to character quickly and easily. Accidentally spend a skill point on something you hate to use? A merchant can untrain it for you for a reasonable fee. Includes nine completely unique skill sets (Nature, Storm, Earth, Defense, Warfare, Rogue, Hunter, Spirit, and Dream). Pick two skill sets to determine your class. Pure genius. This game has everything that Diablo 2 missed. Yes, I said it. Diablo 2 has faults.

Only complaint: Ironforge isn't putting out more patches for Titan Quest. I want more content. This game rocks.

SHORT REVIEW: If you liked Diablo 2, buy Titan Quest.

LONG REVIEW: Read on....

DIABLO 2.5: Titan Quest (TQ) is clearly a rip off of Diablo 2...and that is a good thing. However, TQ is more than just a Diablo Clone. TQ improves upon the genre in just about every way. It seems as if the game developers were big Diablo 2 fans and decided to create a game with all the positive aspects of D2 while eliminating the negative aspect, such as the need to identify and repair items which was eliminated in TQ.

GRAPHICS AND SETTING: The graphics are much more modern than those of the much older Diablo 2. TQ's environments are rendered in 3d and look nice. The game setting is based upon the ancient world and Greek mythology. The four Acts of the original game take place in Greece, Egypt, Asia and Olympus, respectfully. The Immortal Throne (IT) expansion adds Act 5 which takes place in Hades. Unlike Diablo 2, none of the geography in TQ is random. However, the game is long enough and contains enough variety in the areas as to avoid the static geography from becoming boring. Most of the game setting is outside, but there are also a large number of caves and dungeons to explore.

GAME PLAY: Basic and arcade like. You move about the screen in an isometric view and kill lots of baddies. If you like this kind of gameplay style, you will not be disappointed with TQ. Your goal is simple. Complete a variety of Main Quest and Side Quest missions by defeating scores of monsters that stand in your way. Once you beat the game on the normal setting, you can play again on Epic and then Legendary difficulties. The story amounts to the mortal world being drawn into the battle between gods and titans. This story is simple but adequate for the genre and is fitting to the mythological Greek setting.

CHARACTERS AND SKILLS: This is where TQ really shines over Diablo 2. Instead of set character classes and skill trees, you have the option to choose two "masteries" (each with unique skill trees) from amongst the nine available skill masteries. Some of the masteries are more combat focused and others more magic focused, but most of the mastery combinations work well together. For example, you could have a character with Warfare mastery who is basically a melee fighter. Then you could choose any of the eight remaining masteries to pair with Warfare. Choose Warfare/Earth and you have a melee fighter wielding flaming weapons with fire casting capabilities. Choose Warfare/Defense and you now have a conqueror with shield charge and "colossus" form. With the choice of two of any nine different masteries available, there are a vast number of combinations (you do the math). The mastery trees themselves are well done and many skills have synergies that enhance the basic skill attributes. One other smart thing the designers did was to make it possible to respec your character skills by paying money to an NPC. This way, you can always correct a mistake or change skills that become less useful later in the game.

EQUIPMENT: Most of what you expect to find in a game of this genre is present in TQ. Monsters drop loads of items that you can collect and equip or sell. Monsters will also equip and fight with some of the items they drop, so you will actually see a monster wearing the armor and wielding the weapon that he eventually drops once you kill him. Equipment comes in several forms: Grey (broken), White (non-magical), Yellow (magical), Green (rare), Blue (epic) and Purple (legendary). Amongst the Epic and Legendary items, you will also find set items that can be combined to add further enhancements. Most of the equipment will be visually represented on your character. You will see individual helms, body armor, bracers, greaves, weapons and shields displayed on your character. Each character can also equip two rings and an amulet. Some equipment can also be enhanced by adding completed relics and monster charms. With the IT expansion, these relics and monster charms can also be used to create Artifacts that can be "worn" and give character bonuses. With all these elements in play, there will always be something more to collect and/or create. So you can store all those items, the expansion includes a caravan with both a character item storage area and a transfer area in which any character can store or retrieve items. That way you can trade items amongst all your characters.

MULTIPLAYER: TQ is accessible by both LAN and Internet for multiplayer games. As much fun as the single player game is, the multiplayer aspect is even more enjoyable. There is no distinction between the characters you use for single player or multiplayer. You can take the same character into either setting.

FUN and REPLAYABILITY: TQ is just fun to play. It successfully combines the elements of enjoyable gameplay, character advancement and treasure (equipment) hunting and upgrading. The vast variety of character mastery combinations makes for a great deal of character replayability. The best endorsement I can give is that the game is several years old now, and I am still playing it. Enjoy!

Diablo and Diablo 2 standardized the formula for top-down RPGs: You hit stuff, you pick up shinies, you level, you find more shinies while exploring more darkness and killing demonic enemies.

Titan Quest builds on that with a unique class system, ragdolls/dismemberment , very rigid graphics (but by no means the best of the best, so it will run on some slower machines).

I'll make this short...You want Diablo 3, very likely. This will tide you over, if you don't want to revisit Diablo 2 for the tenth time over (but it's an enjoyable tenth time!) -- It has class, though it is linear, and the story is relatively boring - the items are great, visual, and have an appeal like that of the areas you explore...Egyptian/Roman mostly.

The class system allows you to mix two completely different (or similar) archetypes with eachother, say, a rogue with a ranger, or a druidic nature-caster with a barbaric melee class. There are alot of possibilities, some better than others, but all manageable. It's always relatively easy to gear up whichever "spec" you choose, but casters have a harder time. Best of all, if you are unhappy with your "spec" and you made it far, and don't want to scrap the character, there are programs and mods to reverse your selection, like like a respec in World of Warcraft.

The game feels like a very long run down a maze, and there are no randomized dungeons, so the replay is a little stale, but it's always fun to play a new hybrid class.

I recommend picking it up and trying it if you've spent a large amount of time with Diablo-like games, but if you don't enjoy hack'n'slash, it may not be for you.

I generally dislike RPG's but this one has been hard to take a break from. It's easy to play, has fun bad guys and great music and sounds. Check your system requirements before buying the game so you won't have troubles like a few other reviewers. I think if they had had a chance to just play the game, their reviews would be much different. Enjoy!

Do you find it unfair to rate a game a 1 just because your computer failed to run it? I do. So disregard the 1 star ratings. Now is this game any good. Let's get one thing straight; if you loved the Diablo series you WILL love this game. Ok that part is out of the way. This game offers 8 character masteries, but they shouldn't be considered classes. reason being that at lvl 2 you choose one of eight masteries and at level 8 you choose another one of the 7 remaing masteries. These two masteries together decide you class. This little addition to this game makes the replay value extremelty high.

There are three difficulties just like in Diablo 2. You have to play and beat the game on normal in order to unlock epic difficulty and then do the same to unlock the hardest diffilculty. You keep all your items and level when you move to the next difficulty. If you create a new character you have to start from the easiest difficulty all over again. The game will last you about 40 hours on each difficulty (with the expansion). So if you decide to play throughout every difficulty, you are looking at about 120 hours of gameplay time. if you fall in love with this game as I have, you will create a new character and do it all over again. Yes, it's the new Diablo. Yes it is great. If you are waiting for Diablo 3 and have never tried this game, go out and buy it NOW!

There are many injustices in the world. Amongst gaming these offenses take on the form of games that go under-appreciated despite often being "better" than the hyped titles which overshadow them.

Back when I was an early 20 something my best friend was nice enough to share his pc with me and introduce me to Diablo. It was the first game of its' genre I played and I was immediately engrossed by it. Diablo wasn't a game of complexities. In it gamers filled the shoes of a lone adventurer tasked with helping a troubled town via clearing out a foreboding cave of its` demonic inhabitants. Along the way the unlikely hero chugged health and magic potions to survive. A beleaguered slayer of the damned could also buy or find "better gear" to prepare for the worst case scenario right before diving back into the bowels of hell. Every once in awhile the wary protagonist encountered a "boss devil" or "boss undead" which was 5 times more mammoth than anything else encountered before. The ridiculous scaling and size ratio of "under lords" when compared to their lesser minions instilled dread and tension in gamers everywhere.

A year or so later I got the Diablo 2 Battle Chest. It had more classes, a more in depth plot, and a bigger world and yet the magic was already wearing thin for me. Blizzard kept fooling around with things behind the scenes. Certain characters such as the paladin got "nerfed" while bosses and creatures were changed around to the point the strategy guide that came with the Battle Chest was no longer very helpful. To this day fan-boys still claim Diablo 2 is THE BEST of the pack. I cannot help but to think this vocal majority is too doped up on the opium of nostalgia to have an honest opinion.

Don't misunderstand me. I have endearing memories of Diablo 2 yet for some reason the first Diablo is my favorite between them. I'm probably in the minority so weigh that with a little discernment.

It's my personal viewpoint that Titan Quest Gold takes everything Diablo 2 did and does it better. Set in the world of ancient Greece it chronicles the story of "The Titans" emerging from the under world to wreak havoc upon the gods and their mortal followers.

The first thing to take in is the game is beautiful for an isometric dungeon hack. Tall grass sways when you run through it and despite the cornucopia of vibrant colors, detailed flora, impressive water effects, voiced dialogue, and thick hordes of enemies the frame rate only stutters occasionally.

Classes are also much more varied. Though you start out on one path of mastery you'll eventually get to choose a secondary focus and these "combinations" add infinite possibilities. For example when I combined my hunter with a wanderer I got a "Ranger". This allowed me to quicken the rate of my healing items, summon a wolf, and gave me bonuses when fighting any opponent of a somewhat bestial nature. By contrast my friend who joined my campaign was an eclectic blend of a warrior and a necromancer. He could call upon a lich, buff his attack damage, and lay waste to just about anything that was unfortunate enough to enter his path! Our co-op lan party was a seamless experience. After partnering up we could do in game trading and share experience.

If you're afraid Greece is going to get tired to look after awhile, Iron-lore has you covered. You'll travel through Sparta, The Silk Road, The Mediterranean, Egypt, the pits of Hades, and along the creepy shores of the river Styx to get to the bottom of all the unrest and upheaval. Titan Quest has a robust bestiary of monsters to compliment the exotic locales. If you're the type who studies mythological creatures and "ancient civilizations" in general this game will be your chocolate covered cherry topped Sunday!

Accompanying the mass scale slaughtering are countless item drops. Not only can you collect hundreds of weapons, shields, rings, necklaces, and armor pieces but you can also further enhance them via an alchemy system.

Normally the sheer scope of Titan Quest's massive world would make it daunting to explore. Fortunately, a convenient artifact allows participants to instantly portal to any previously visited town whenever they wish. This device is likewise a two-way dimensional gateway enabling players to return to their dungeon without any hiccups or hassles!

Assuming I had a few points to knit pick it would be the voice acting itself isn't the greatest, there are very few ways to customize your character's appearance beyond a gender choice, and the flow of the narrative never gives you a sense of personal investment or identity. Aka the flaws that have been with this genre since its' inception are still lingering around like annoying pigeons on the lawn.

For you if

If you are still waiting for Diablo 3 to chug along you cannot ask for much better filler than Titan Quest. Along with the Sacred series it's a standard setter of the hack n slash rpg mold. With great co-op, beautiful visuals, and easy to understand game play TQ makes it easy for gamers to pick it up and play it without unsavory snags of frustration! TQ also is a love letter to ancient myths, legendary heroes, and old world civilizations.

Not for you if

Many players of rpgs eventually move onto more complex examples of the genre. Sometimes we like an rpg with multiple choices that plays out like a well written book. If you can level anything at TQ it is that its' world is bland save for its' combat. Npcs don't give you a choice of diverse actions to respond with and your hero is built solely for collecting loot and slaughtering droves of baddies. There are gamers out there looking for the next Elder scrolls, the next Mass Effect, the next Witcher, and the next Deus Ex. For them TQ's old fashioned linear conventions could be more tedious than fun.

How does it compare to the competition?

Sacred Gold and Sacred 2 have the inclusion of mounts whereas TQ is lacking.

However, TQ has a more diverse combination of skills and classes. What seems limited at first opens up later when you realize you can mix and match any two occupations to build a unique character.

Sacred 2 definitely seems much bigger when it comes to the sheer scale of its' map. Not only that, but Sacred Gold & Sacred 2 are more of an open ended sandbox allowing you to do quests in any order whereas TQ plods you along in a rather linear direction despite a few branching side quests along the way.

For me co-op was more enjoyable in TQ than it was in Sacred 2 and Sacred Gold. Being able to trade gear with your buddy effortlessly and share gold are major pluses TQ does better than Sacred.

The missions seem more varied in the Sacred series but I personally found many of the escort missions to be nay impossible due to the stupid AI of my companions. By contrast TQ's objectives are less frustrating.

Both competitors break even. If you want mounts, a gigantic map, and the ability to do tasks in any order I'd suggest Sacred Gold or Sacred 2 but if you want a wider array of character builds, smoother co-op, and numerous skills TQ should be your main!

Final verdict

As a hack n slash treasure nabbing rpg TQ gets 5 out of 5 karate chops!

As a riveting epic with interesting characters, branching story paths, and unexpected plot twists it gets 1 disappointed sigh of sheer boredom!

If action rpg's are your thing then this is a must-have game. I have been playing it to kill time while waiting for Dungeon Siege 3 and Diablo 3 and I have to say that it is a lot of fun. The graphics are nothing to write home about but not bad and the sound is ok. The game mechanics, though, are spot on. There are seven classes from which to choose and each character gets to pick two classes, so lots of combinations. Within each class are multiple skill trees, so customization is awesome. Also, new and better monsters show up on the higher difficulty levels (there are three difficulty levels- normal, epic, and legendary) so replayability is high. There is a good balance between melee characters and magic characters, lots of options based on how you like to play. And the game is long. It took me more than forty hours to complete the game and expansion pack, and I didn't even do that much farming. I understand that there is a good multi-player option but I have not tried it.

I bought 3 copies of this game. 1 for me and 2 for my family members to play with me.

We finished the normal difficulty in about 30 hours. The great thing about playing with other people is that there are more mobs... They are also tuffer to kill and if you get an item you can't use... Chances are they can.

We are on Epic now. Better loot, tougher mobs and new mobs. Seems to be more fun. Legendary should be a blast.

Yes this game does get boring from time to time. Alot of this game feels unfinished and dragged out. However China is the best part. It feels almost finished and less dragged out. China is the last part of the normal Titans Quest game. So you have something to look forward to.

We are waiting till we finished Titans Quest (all difficulties) before we move onto the expansion. The expansion features a vault type space. Great for all the loot you get. It's not as long as the normal game. Running around 10 hours. This should speed the pace of the game up a bit for us... Instead of seeing Greece for 10 hours and Egypt for 10.

Overall this is a great game if you have people you know to play with. It is a shame it's not supported any more. There is still technical issues... Like rubber banding (preformance jumps and dumps).

This game should hold people over till Diablo 3 comes out. At $20 what can you lose? Try it...