Runic Games has officially announced a sequel to best-selling Diablo clone, Torchlight, saying the project is currently in development and rapidly approaching release.

Torchlight 2 is currently set to be released in Spring 2011 and will apparently be distributed by digitally, just like the original Torchlight was.

New features for Torchlight 2 include outdoor areas, new weather effects and four character classes. It'll feature online co-op gameplay too, with matchmaking systems that'll pair players up with a similar characters at a similar level.

The game is set to move beyond the eponymous town (and caverns beneath) of Torchlight, with characters venturing into the wider world once a prophetic dream summons them to the Estherian Steppes.

"There, you meet with the Destroyer and soon venture across the continent of Vilderan, an exotic frontier besieged by forces of evil," goes the official spiel. "A discovery unfolds, that the Alchemist, following his conquest of dark ember, disappeared on his quest to defeat the unknown corrupted force responsible for destroying the mystical race of Estherians."

"Aided by the remaining Estherian Guardians, and clues left behind by the missing Alchemist, you will find yourself battling a powerful enemy that threatens to unravel the elements of the entire world."

More information is available on the official Torchlight 2 site.

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