Since August 1, 2025, Titan Quest 2 has been playable in Early Access on Steam. MeinMMO editor Benedict Grothaus has seen the game before, but has so far ignored it – especially because Diablo 4 seemed like the better alternative. The first hours in Titan Quest 2 have proven him wrong.
When it came to action RPGs and hack-and-slashes, my youth was primarily shaped by Sacred and Dungeon Siege. Diablo came much later and Titan Quest completely passed me by, even though it is one of the best alternatives to Diablo.
Accordingly, I wasn’t really into the hype around Titan Quest 2’s announcement in 2023. Many fans were totally thrilled, for me it was just a new action RPG that I first got to see live at Gamescom in 2024.
At that time, I viewed the game quite skeptically. The developers spoke with me and specifically asked for my opinion and improvements – I was quite direct and said that Titan Quest 2 simply felt too sluggish.
Especially in light of Vessel of Hatred, the first expansion for Diablo 4, which I had played in advance, Titan Quest 2 didn’t seem like it could compete at all. Path of Exile 2 was also waiting in the wings. Not a good sign.
Now we have access to Early Access, and I initially ignored it until I finally decided to install Titan Quest 2 out of a whim on Sunday. Luckily, otherwise I would have missed out.
The intro caught my attention, the “classes” kept me engaged
One reason for the installation was that fans are raving about Titan Quest 2. Normally, with sequels after such a long time, nostalgia often leads to more criticism because people have a more positive memory of the original than it really was.
With curiosity and the advantage that I don’t have to compare the game to its predecessor, I dove into the adventure. Just a few minutes in, I had my first surprise: My teacher is voiced by Emma Gregory, who also lends her iconic voice to Minthara and many characters in Warhammer. That made me smile.
However, I also found the fight against the crabs at the beginning quite satisfying. I found different weapons, which, although each has a single attack, all feel different.
I was really hooked when I got to choose my first mastery – these are basically the classes in Titan Quest 2. Here the game showed me something that always felt lacking in Diablo.
I’m packing my spell and taking with me …
The class and skill system in Titan Quest 2 works such that you choose one of currently four masteries, which provide you with abilities and passives:
- Earth: Throws fire and earth spells around
- Rogue: Fights with stealth and poisons
- Storm: Casts spells of ice and lightning
- Warfare: Classic focus on weapons and armor
Instead of just distributing skill points that enhance abilities, increased skills in Titan Quest 2 allow me to add new effects to them. For example, my ice spikes now no longer just fly forward but chase enemies or – if no enemies are around – circle around me until the next target appears.
I haven’t been able to skill very far yet, but I’m already having a great time building my skills. There’s potential for tons of exciting, crazy, or too strong builds.
Just like in the first part, you can combine two masteries at the end and thus create your “class.” I’m currently a rogue ice mage, aptly dubbed “Stormblade” by the game.
The class system is very similar to that of the first part, except that skills there didn’t develop as they do in Titan Quest 2. A few months ago, I tried the predecessor at a friend’s suggestion, so I now have a very direct comparison.
Titan Quest did not hook me at all and even made me lose interest in the skills. It felt like a lot of skilling for little yield, similar to Diablo at times, and a long time of leveling without noticeable change. The joy of playing in Titan Quest 2 is immediately present.
Titan Quest 2 is not finished yet, but promising
Currently, the Early Access of Titan Quest 2 offers only about 10 hours of content, which I probably won’t fully exhaust. It’s fun to play around with the skills and I will certainly experiment a bit more.
Interestingly, GameStar also expresses similar enthusiasm in their early review.
However, I don’t like playing the same content over and over, which is why I will likely wait for new content updates or even the full release after Early Access, which will probably happen at the end of 2026.
At the moment, the game doesn’t even have multiplayer or German localization. Nonetheless, it is one of the best-selling games on Steam in Germany.
Apart from the limited content, which will be expanded over the next months – it was said that a large update will come about every 3 months – Titan Quest 2 already seems very stable. The graphics are exceptionally pretty, the atmosphere is fitting, the gameplay is slower than Diablo but feels somewhat “more significant,” more exciting, and less rushed.
Titan Quest 2 will definitely keep me occupied for a few more hours, even with the limited content. At least until August 14, 2025. Because that’s when the game I’ve been eagerly waiting for many years will be released, even if some of my fellow nerds are upset: fans are finally getting the remaster of one of the best games in Warhammer 40,000 after 21 years, and are now upset about a Space Marine
