Titan Quest ditches the Medieval fantasy found in other hack n’ slash RPGs for the world of Greek Mythology where the Titans have found a way out of their prison and are seeking vengeance against Zeus. Of course, this means tormenting the general populace.
Gameplay doesn’t stray too far from the standard formula. You begin as a blank slate of a character and travel from town to town completing missions for townsfolk. Where Titan Quest differs from the rest is in its job system. When you begin, you are limited to choosing your character’s sex and tunic color. It is not until you reach level 2 that the job system opens up, allowing you to take on a range of jobs. There’s enough variety that you should be able to find something that suits your needs, though neither the game nor the instructions offer that much information on each. A chart is included that offers a breakdown of each job’s various skill sets, but it was still a bit confusing, so I ended up simply going with my gut reactions.
As you level your character, you’ll earn points to spend on your job’s available skills. Points can either be assigned to a general skill pool or to unlocked skills. In order to unlock skills, you must reach a certain tier on the general pool meter. Once a tier is unlocked, you can begin training in available arts, some of which require that you first gain knowledge in other skills.
Once I got the hang of it, I really liked the skill system. It offers enough diversity that you can actually feel like you have a “unique” character while never making you think that you’ve wasted points. There’s enough leeway that you can experiment and see how things work.
Leveling also earns attribute points that go into increasing your character’s base skills like strength and intelligence. Upping these skills will give you more health and mana points as well as allowing you to use better equipment – which leads us to one of Titan Quest’s weaker aspects.
Titan Quest is no slouch when it comes to loot drops, though there is a lack of useful loot. There isn’t much consistency in regards to when you find pieces of loot. Your chances of finding a great item are just as good early on as they are late in the game. While finding an awesome sword might sound cool, most of the really good stuff is level restricted, turning what was once an uber item into uber dead weight.
Having to hold on to certain items wouldn’t be that big a deal if the inventory system wasn’t clunky. The actual amount of space you’re given to hold items isn’t much; you can easily spend 5 – 10 minutes just nudging items around your inventory grid. In addition, some items take up way more room then they should. Both problems lead to tough decisions and headaches. Since good items fall rather easily, it is rare that you’ll have to actually buy something from merchants. In fact, the only times I actually felt the need to pay them a visit was to dump off loot and increase my bankroll.
Level designs also pose a bit of a problem. Unlike other hack n’ slash games, levels aren’t randomly generated. True, this allows for some nice artistry in level design, it takes away from the fun and replay. Levels are very linear and never give you the feeling that you’re in a bigger place. Everything is very has a very confined feel; as if the ancient world was nothing but one long path.