Torchlight 3's spring update will be the current developer's last

Echtra is wrapping up development on Torchlight 3 with one final update, as the studio moves onto new things under new owner Zynga.

Writing in a "bittersweet" blog post this week, the Torchlight developer wrote that the game's spring update (which adds a cannon-toting Cursed Captain class to the game) would be the studio's last on the game. Echtra was acquired by Zynga back in March, and as part of that, the publisher is keen on getting the developer to move onto different projects.

"This is also a sad message because it marks the end of Echtra Games’ work on Torchlight III. As you may have heard in the news, we were acquired by Zynga back on March 2nd. As a result of this transition, we are moving on to new (and exciting) things, and we will be passing the baton back to our partners at Perfect World."

It's sad news for a studio that was founded expressly to make Torchlight games, cobbling together staff from defunct series creator Runic Games. Torchlight 3 was to be a live service game under the name Torchlight Frontiers, before being reworked into a more traditional action-RPG following early playtests. Zynga expressed a desire to have the team bring its "iconic licenses" to PC following the acquisition.

It's hard to say if this'll be the last-ever Torchlight 3 update—though with the game's launch greeted by an overwhelming shrug, I wouldn't be shocked if Perfect World's updates were restricted to the most basic maintenance. The spring update hopefully leaves the game in a better place, arriving with a laundry-list of balance tweaks, bug fixes and quality-of-life improvements. You can read the full notes here.

20 years ago, Nat played Jet Set Radio Future for the first time, and she's not stopped thinking about games since. Joining PC Gamer in 2020, she comes from three years of freelance reporting at Rock Paper Shotgun, Waypoint, VG247 and more. Embedded in the European indie scene and a part-time game developer herself, Nat is always looking for a new curiosity to scream about—whether it's the next best indie darling, or simply someone modding a Scotmid into Black Mesa. She also unofficially appears in Apex Legends under the pseudonym Horizon.