Torchlight: Infinite Turns Up the Risk With New Hardcore Server The Unbound

Torchlight: Infinite players looking for a more dangerous way to test their builds now have another option. XD Games has launched The Unbound, a new Hardcore server built around permadeath, faster combat, expanded build crafting, and significantly higher-risk rewards.

The Unbound arrives as a mid-season addition to the ongoing Afterlight season and is intended to return as a recurring seasonal event. The basic rule is exactly what experienced ARPG players would expect from Hardcore: once your character dies, that run is over.

Fortunately, XD is giving players some powerful new tools to help survive.

Move to Cast Could Completely Change Mapping

One of The Unbound's biggest additions is a mechanic called Unbound – Move to Cast.

Rather than forcing players to repeatedly stop to attack, Move to Cast regularly activates your Main Skill while your character moves through the battlefield. The result should be much faster mapping and smoother leveling, particularly for builds capable of dealing damage while constantly repositioning.

The second major mechanic, Unshackled Destiny, removes the normal limits placed on Destiny Installs. That gives players considerably more freedom when designing their characters and could lead to some unusually powerful combinations.

Of course, those powerful builds still disappear if you die.

Five Free Compasses Push Risk Even Further

The Unbound also introduces five new Compasses tied to different pieces of Torchlight: Infinite content.

The Unbound Arcana Compass improves opportunities to encounter Tarot Trials and Secret Paths, while the Overrealm Compass guarantees that the first Bottle Shadow captured will be Red Quality or better. Outlaw increases Bonus Supply triggers, Dark Surge improves the likelihood of Legendary Gear rewards, and Lunaria guarantees a Scarlet Moon Incantation boss encounter.

All five Compasses are obtainable for free, but there's a catch: using them can also make enemies more dangerous.

That creates an interesting risk-versus-reward loop for a Hardcore environment. Players are being given faster clearing, fewer build restrictions, and better opportunities for loot, while simultaneously being encouraged to take on encounters capable of permanently ending their character.

An Experiment for Torchlight: Infinite

Perhaps the most interesting part of The Unbound is that XD Games isn't promising these systems will eventually make their way to Torchlight: Infinite's standard servers.

For now, the Hardcore server functions almost like an experimental playground where the developers can push progression and combat mechanics further than usual.

Whether Move to Cast or unlimited Destiny Installs eventually become part of the wider game remains to be seen, but The Unbound gives players a chance to experience them now—as long as they're willing to put their characters on the line.