The path of exile 2 this is one 2024 ARPG I've been looking forward to all year. Diablo 4 It's my main genre torch, really, so I was secretly hoping that PoE 2 wouldn't arrive because I'm knee deep in Vessel of Hate or any other major event. Luckily for me, though, he managed to get well out of Diablo 4's way.
I have always considered Path of Exile 2 to be The first real Diablo 4 tournamentso I came to him expecting something to that effect; to be deceived At the very least, I was hoping it would join my regular roster of ARPGs.
Having now spent ten or so hours with the early access build, it's pretty clear that it's a completely different animal that I'm oscillating between being an entry, and my fingers hover over Alt-F4 more than I have with any of these games.
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In addition to its complexity, often disturbing depth and unfriendliness to new players, is my main issue with the original. The Path of Exile it was always a fighting spirit; the only thing that stopped me from appreciating it all. A big reason I was looking forward to the sequel was reviewing the entire game Grinding Gear Games has been very entertaining in the months since its first release .
I watched enough gameplay videos, read so much foreshadowing and developer interviews that I'm sure GGG knew he had to make the moment feel more satisfying on his own, and definitely bright enough to attract the diablo regulars/fiends. What I was experiencing was not at all what I expected.
Path of Exile 2 is not going to destroy Diablo 4, as it has a completely different approach to gameplay. I enjoyed playing it, but not because it surpasses, or even matches, Diablo 4's, well, anything. If Diablo 4 is a fast, fluid action game that prioritizes time-to-play and enables power fantasies, Path of Exile 2 is a tactical, slower-paced ARPG that requires you to to design a procedure, and you are not afraid to punish you for. not meeting him where he wants.
Almost every action in PoE 2 takes longer to complete, and often has what Diablo 4 would consider unnecessary friction. Animations are intentional, and your character will not perform the actions millisecond you click the button. Part of why I didn't immediately dismiss that approach is the game's commitment to it, and how it justifies that style within its own gameplay space – even if it ends falling apart more often than I would like.
If you consider Diablo 4 to be the Call of Duty of its genre, PoE 2 would be closer to it Insurgencyor classical Battlefield. It may not always justify that more systematic approach, but if you go in with that understanding, you'll have a great time.
The more I played, the more I started to see it in a different light than I do Diablo 4. It made a lot of sense why it offers WASD movement as an option. In fact, it made me seriously consider switching to a controller for the first time playing an ARPG. A degree of movement and precision is required here, and it's not one I could reproduce with a mouse.
While the moment-to-moment is satisfying, and definitely far more engaging than the original game, I'm still disappointed with what's missing here. Environmental interactivity, for example, is a major letdown compared to Diablo. When your Spiritborn Gorilla hits the ground in Diablo 4, everything influence is all around you; pots and boxes are smashed, bodies bounce from the sheer force of the impact, and each slam creates dents in the ground.
One of the Hero skills in Path of Exile 2 summons an earthquake, but aside from the visual flare of the skill itself, the area around it doesn't change much. Environments are static, and the crash is so hard that you'll be messing with small things all the time. Of course, if it's not the trash that's stopping you, it's the enemies themselves, especially the damn beetles and other small enemies.
Most of my deaths are caused by being trapped, unable to escapea Given how challenging the game is, I can't tell whether or not that amount of enemy crash is intentional.
When you're not stopped from moving, it's fun duking it out with the same enemies. PoE 2 is a game that really asks you to consider your moves, not spam the hot bar. Enemies are tough, they hit hard, and are almost always faster than you. The ground shaking skill I mentioned earlier, for example, confused and frustrated me at first. It takes far too long to act, and the effect is often triggered just because you're going to end anyway. But, if you use it before you aggro a mob, it will be devastating when they run into it.
Each class has similar skills that also require some planning. You can't just jump into the fight and expect to just soak up all the damage. PoE 2 limits your healing resource, meaning you'll have a poor experience without a thoughtful approach to combat. Weapon switching is another area that I was surprised to find very basic to the flow. Some of your skills can only be used with certain weapons, but your character will move to a location. It makes a lot of sense to create hybrid classes, or carry a second weapon just because of one or two of the skills they provide.
That design philosophy is also reflected in how the game allows you to cancel certain skills halfway through their animations, if you're on the ball enough to cut off the animation. just after the effect is triggered. This one has a kind of stick-and-move rhythm to it that is reminiscent of classic Diablo.
The amount of time I've put into Path of Exile 2 so far is right around when I'd normally stop playing the previous one, but I'm going to play more. I want to see more of that world, meet more characters, explore new areas – and yes, bang my head against its walls without moving for a few more hours.
The path of exile 2 launched on December 6 on PC, Xbox, and PlayStation.
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