Runic: XBLA Torchlight Achieves 'Highest Sale Day Ever' For Game

Runic Games said on Tuesday the Xbox Live Arcade version of its action RPG Torchlight recently achieved the "highest sales day ever" for the game, which was already available on Mac and PC. Seattle, WA-based Runic did not reveal the actual number of peak daily sales of the Xbox Live version, which launched on March 9, but said the amount outpaced any sales day for any other version of the game. As of Tuesday, leaderboards showed around 74,000 players, reflecting a rough estimate of sales. Torchlight is currently being prominently promoted on the Xbox Live dashboard as part of Microsoft's House Party promotion. A rep for the studio said she couldn't comment on hard sales figures for the XBLA version of the game, but said that PC Torchlight sales have seen a boost since the release of the console iteration. Torchlight is a Diablo-esque action RPG created by staff that includes former key members of Blizzard Entertainment's Diablo development team. Runic, a subsidiary of Perfect World, won the best debut award at the Game Developers Choice Awards in 2009. In August last year prior to the XBLA version, Runic CEO Max Schaefer told Gamasutra that the game had sold "well over" 600,000 copies, primarily as downloads. At the time, the game was selling for $20, with sales boosted by occasional discounts. Currently, it sells for around $15 on all platforms. Runic president Travis Baldree added in a statement Tuesday, "We're very excited to bring Torchlight to the 360, and have been really gratified by the positive reaction. It's affirming to know that console players love this genre as much as we do. We think the experience translates pretty well to the couch." The studio is developing Torchlight II for PC, a multiplayer follow-up reportedly due in July, as well as a Torchlight MMO, whose release is further off.