Titan Quest is a 2006 action role-playing game developed by Iron Lore Entertainment and published by THQ for Windows, first physically and then in 2007 through Steam.

Despite being in a mythical setting, the team wanted to make the environments and towns feel as realistic as possible, leading to a large amount of research into ancient cultures.

The mobile port was tricky for its developers due to adapting the game for touchscreen controls: like the console version, it received positive reviews upon release.

The engine and gameplay of Titan Quest later became the foundation for Grim Dawn, a video game developed by team members from Iron Lore following the studio's closure.

[2][3][4] The three-dimensional world is navigated through an overhead third-person view, with the player character being controlled with the mouse through a point-and-click interface, while abilities are mapped to keyboard buttons.

Player characters have multiple equipment slots, which can take armor for limbs and torso, weapons or shields, and accessories that grant passive boons.

[2] Fighting takes the form of real-time hack and slash combat, with players attacking randomly-generated enemies highlighted by the mouse.

[2] Items and equipment can also be looted from fallen enemies and chests scattered through environments: these range in quality, with grey standing for damaged or low-quality gear while purple stands for a "Legendary" item, and orange denotes a Relic or Charm which can be equipped to the player to increase an attribute such as elemental damage resistance.

After defeating the first Telkine beneath the palace of Knossos, the player travels to Egypt and attempts to restore the connection between Earth and Olympus.

Pursuing the Telkine to the Wusou Mountains, the player is too late to prevent the release of the Titan Typhon, who travels to Olympus to destroy the gods.

In Ragnarök, the player travels to the Norse realms, allying with the inhabitants of Asgard against an invasion by the Jotunn and the schemes of the treacherous Loki.

In Eternal Embers, the player travels to China and must deal with the ten sun spirits, who seek to avert their prophesied destruction and begin attacking mortals.

[3][6] The concept work for Titan Quest began in 2000, when its developer Iron Lore Entertainment was formed by Sullivan and Paul Chieffo.

[10] Titan Quest was aimed at both casual and hardcore gamers, as the necessary prices for games necessitated reaching out to a wide audience to get a profit.

[14] Together with Iron Lore staff, Wallace created a story where humans and the Olympians faced both the Titans and the mythical beasts allied with them that had retreated to the forgotten parts of the world.

[12] Later, lead gameplay designer Arthur Bruno faulted the presentation as unappealing compared to the version of Greek mythology portrayed by God of War series, saying that the original atmosphere "was seriously lacking a sense of dread and mystery".

[15][16] The game's art director was Michael Sheidow, who had done concept work for Dungeons & Dragons Online before joining Iron Lore.

Initially hired as lead artist, Sheidow was at the time feeling "burnt out" by the design approaches used for Dungeons & Dragons Online.

When it reached the modelling stage, the monster designs were further refined to work within the restrictions of the game, then it was sent to the art time again for final adjustments and mapping of unique animations.

[20] The particle effects were handled by Travis Doggett: one of the more prominent pieces of his work were the mastery skills, which had particular themes related to their abilities.

All of this necessitated a large amount of research on multiple subjects, including the flora of Egypt and the appearance of Ancient Greek roads and paths.

[9] Level and map creation was handled by a three-person team, with each one needing to agree upon a specific layout and design before it went into full production.

This enabled the free modification of sound elements, but also meant that unexpected and large work loads with short deadlines were a constant possibility.

[32] The music was challenging due to drawing from multiple cultures, then being brought together into a cohesive score while keeping each region distinct from the other.

[31][32] Rather than a linear progression of looping musical tracks, the norm for most games at the time, the score was broken up into stingers that were brought into the environment when needed.

[82] In a later interview, Bruno stated that the title had sold "surprisingly well" despite a slow start, with combined sales for Titan Quest and Immortal Throne reaching over one million units by late 2008.

[74] GameSpot's Ryan Davis called it "the next-best thing" to a new Diablo title, praising its single-player campaign and multiplayer while faulting its familiar feel, inventory system and recurring technical issues.

[73] IGN's Tom McNamara generally praised the gameplay despite some awkward elements, called the sound design "well done", and positively noted its graphics despite some technical troubles.

[76] PALGN reviewer Mark Marrow called Titan Quest "one of the best PC games on the market for the year", saying it revitalized its genre despite some minor issues with gameplay and presentation.

[79] Gamezebo's Rob Rich praised the gameplay elements carried over from the original, and positively noted its graphical detail despite persistent framerate drops.