Path of Exile 2 Review

I loved Path of Exile, and it has been one of my favorite Dark Fantasy Action-RPGs for a while now. I’ve been playing it regularly until Diablo IV showed up last year. And the moment I learned about Path of Exile 2, I was both happy and skeptical about the news. Did the first one really need a sequel to keep marching on, as it saw consistent updates for over ten years? However, regardless of what I thought, Grinding Gear Games released it anyway. And after playing it, I honestly don’t regret it, no, not at all. 

First envisioned as just an expansion, Path of Exile 2 grew into a full-fledged sequel in the time that has passed since then. Having invested quite a lot of time with this title myself, I can say that it is so much more than just an upgrade over its predecessor; it is an inspired reboot of the action RPG genre. It’s a much more polished experience that I’ve been craving while playing the first game.

If you’ve played the original, the first thing you’ll notice upon starting Path of Exile 2 is how polished the game feels right from the get-go. Although released as an Early Access build, it ran amazingly well optimized for PC. 

Quite honestly, considering the scope of this game, it's a real surprise to me that I didn't encounter any game-breaking bugs or other technical issues. It's hard to make any sort of judgment as to how optimized this is, but initial impressions would lead one to believe that the developers simply worked their socks off in a very seamless fashion.

Although this is a rather well-known game, it's highly enhanced. Fans of top-down action RPGs will no doubt immediately feel right at home in the dark fantasy world of Path of Exile 2, slicing through hordes of creatures with ease and gathering loads of loot. Though at first, it might feel a touch shallow, like an impersonation of its predecessor or Diablo, depending on your angle, it actually takes surprisingly little time to appreciate just how much has changed.

Path of Exile 2’s Alternative Presentation of Tactical Combat One aspect that very noticeably stands out, for example, is the addition of a dodgeball. Be that as it may be slight in itself, it makes the feel of combat incredibly addictive. Whereas the first could get away with spamming attacks and spells with little to no real effort given to positioning on your part, Path of Exile 2 requires more of you.

Because the abilities have become animated and have some kind of wind-up with them, the timing and placement in Path of Exile 2 will be very critical. This adds a bit more tactical depth to the fights, especially with regard to dealing in boss bouts. 

Talking of bosses, well, the variety and concept are just great: all the boss fights present in this early version of the video game are memorable, and at your disposal, you have a choice of fifty of them. Some of these bosses tap into that Dark Souls energy to show dramatic patterns and presentations that really challenge your reflexes and flexibility.

The difficulty with this class, however, appears to be about right: it is challenging enough to hold my attention, yet it is not so punitive as to make me feel irritated.

In Path of Exile 2, character development is more accessible while retaining its complexity compared to the original. Yes, the passive talent tree remains, but this time around, progress is way simpler. I like how the game made it a lot easier on fresh players without dumbing the system down so that it's initially very easy to grasp. 

Another bold move was the reorganization of skill gems. The system isn't as restrictive now because the skills are moved into a specific menu rather than bound to specific equipment. They did this to make it more inviting. 

Since the system was changed early in Path of Exile 2, players will be able to choose a wide variety of skills, and they will also be granted nine default skill slots. Since the first moments of the game, talents have been the whole point, and not even once have I been forced onto some boring default attack option.

The addition of new mechanics in personalization options, such as spirit jewels, greatly extends personalization options. These gems enable powerful summons and buffs, adding another layer to crafting. It performs the tutorialized approach of teaching these elements really effectively; the game drip-feeds information at an acceptable speed, which kept me from feeling overwhelmed. 

A great yet diverse world: Path of Exile 2 is a visually stunning game. Dark fantasy aesthetics were implemented just about perfectly: desolate landscapes, deserts, and jungles were among the settings. Variety was what seemed the most impressive thing to me; no two regions looked alike.

That's the kind of attention to detail that bleeds down into even the designs of the enemies, making sure a fight's never quite the same. Be it some undead miner or a mud golem, these little tweaks in how the foes were behaving kept me on my toes right to the bitter end. 

It's serviceable, but it's not the star of the show, either. You've got a pretty straightforward tale of getting revenge with some Lovecraftian trappings tacked on. In addition to trying to evade execution, you end up chasing down an evil lord and uncovering a conspiracy involving dark magic and resurrection.

While not original by any means, the story does its part for the most part, trying to explain enough to get Path of Exile 2 to move forward. Among those, the mercenary class is my favorite. Speaking of classes, Path of Exile 2 actually has a pretty decent number of classes. 

My favorite class is the Mercenary because of how ridiculously hilarious this crossbow-wielding character is during combat. It is not only an easy weapon to shoot from a distance but also the equivalent of a medieval machine gun with an attached shotgun. Thrown in are some skills out of this world, like the launch of grenade-shooting bolts and even a shotgun blast from within, dragon's breath.

Playing as the Mercenary was very dynamic; hence, I found myself very easily clinging to that feeling. Also, all the other classes have more vitality and are more interesting to players than the first class. Improvements in the fighting mechanism make sure that each class has a different taste, so it is going to be fun no matter which class you choose to play.

Controls and Availability of Access are Where Path of Exile 2 truly excels. Be it via controller or keyboard and mouse, the experience just feels so natural. A nice touch here is that unique UI settings are included for each of these input methods. On a personal note, however, I did not object to their switching very much because both of those schemes are identically responsive and intuitive.

Even though Path of Exile 2 was very enjoyable, there are some issues that should be pointed out. One of the most important features is that it is an online game, which creates certain instances of input lag.

While I did not really take note of this too much in my play, I could imagine that server congestion would surely be a peeving point once Path of Exile 2 is released. A few minor bugs that break the illusion are also found in the Early Access version. These include overlapping conversations and cutting across scenery. These problems are very rare, however, and will very probably be ironed out before the final version.

The monetization model is perhaps the "elephant in the room." There will be a microtransaction shop in Path of Exile 2, adhering to the same free-to-play model that worked in its predecessor. While I wasn't able to look into the shop myself in this early access build, be assured that it'll remain fair and unobtrusive. Given their track record, I'm optimistic. 

It is worth noting that Early Access to Path of Exile 2 currently comes in at a price of 30 bucks, which may make some players wary of whether to see this through to the very end or not. The information that was available to me-which consisted of three acts, each of which took approximately eight hours to finish-seemed well worth the price. 

All in all, Path of Exile 2 is looking to become everything I could have hoped it to be and then some. Graphically, it looks better, and the overall interest levels and action elements have been buffed to shine. This title has managed to turn out so much better than its predecessor in most ways possible.

With that said, with the great atmosphere, smoothed-out systems, and deep combat, Path of Exile is a game that Dark Fantasy Action-RPG genre fans seriously owe to themselves to check out. There is a tremendous amount of content for anyone willing to pay for early access, and it is easily well worth the price.