Path of Exile
News, coverage and analysis tracking Path of Exile across the outlets.- MMO Hype Train: Can Scars of Honor overcome its generic WoW clone identity?Scars of Honor, an upcoming MMORPG from Beast Burst Entertainment, faces scrutiny over its generic identity and past crowdfunding failure. Despite a colorful visual style reminiscent of RuneScape and Albion Online, the game's features list offers little distinction from existing titles. The article questions whether Scars of Honor can overcome its "WoW clone" label and generate sufficient hype to succeed in the competitive MMO market.
Path of Exile 2 for Busy Adults | TAGThis guide offers strategies for busy adults to engage with Path of Exile 2, a demanding ARPG with frequent league resets. It recommends focusing on the campaign and standard league progression, skipping competitive elements like ladder climbing and complex trade optimization. The article suggests a minimum time commitment of 6-8 hours per week for a satisfying experience and outlines realistic paths for new and returning players, emphasizing the importance of prioritizing core skill gems and basic atlas progression.
PlayStation – and The Gaming Industry – Just Doesn’t Learn With Live-ServiceDespite numerous high-profile failures and significant layoffs within studios like Bungie and Quantic Dream, Sony Interactive Entertainment, led by Hideaki Nishino, remains committed to pursuing live-service games. This strategy is questioned due to past setbacks and the company's historical strength in single-player titles, with concerns that chasing trends is leading to wasted investment and development resources.
The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth hits a new concurrent player record on Steam 12 years after it was releasedThe Binding of Isaac: Rebirth has achieved a new concurrent player record on Steam, with nearly 131,000 players, surpassing its previous peak from 2021. This surge is attributed to a significant 90% discount during the Steam Summer Sale. The game, along with its expansions like Repentance and Repentance+, continues to be a popular roguelike, currently ranking as the 10th biggest game on Steam.
Steam Week in Review: Steam sales are the best time to hoard dozens of forgotten '90s PC gaming odditiesThe Steam Summer Sale offers deep discounts on major titles, but also presents an opportunity to explore forgotten '90s PC gaming oddities. The article highlights obscure FMV racers, cyberpunk adventures, and rail shooters, suggesting that even browsing trailers and screenshots can be a fascinating dive into video game history. It also notes the ongoing popularity of games like Cyberpunk 2077 and PUBG: Battlegrounds during the sale period.- 6 Vacation Week Games to Finish Before Flying Home | TAGThis guide recommends six games that can be completed within a 5-10 hour playtime, ideal for finishing during a week-long vacation. It emphasizes narrative-driven and handheld-compatible titles like Inside, Stray, A Short Hike, What Remains of Edith Finch, and Firewatch, with Outer Wilds suggested for longer vacations. The article also provides advice on session structure, device choice, and avoiding common vacation gaming pitfalls.
- Path of Exile 2 showcases a new endgame-centric passive tree arriving in its next patchPath of Exile 2 is introducing a new endgame-centric passive tree in its upcoming patch 0.5.4. This atlas passive tree will offer 24 unlockable points to customize encounters and expeditions. The patch also includes an update to unique items, allowing them to be used at minimum level requirements and scale their power down for lower-level characters.
New Path of Exile 2 update adds yet another skill tree on top of making unique items easier to use in order to "open up a whole bunch of builds" in the action RPGPath of Exile 2's latest update introduces the Atlas Passive Tree, offering players more customization options for character builds. This update also makes unique items scale with character level, allowing powerful gear to be used earlier in the game. Developer Jonathan Rogers stated this aims to "open up a whole bunch of builds available to play much earlier."
Path of Exile 2 just added yet another skill tree, because why the heck notGrinding Gear Games has released update 0.5.4 for Path of Exile 2, introducing a new Atlas Passive skill tree focused on the Expedition mechanic and the Runes of Aldur seasonal league. The update also adjusts unique items to scale down their granted skills for lower-level characters and adds new unique gloves called The Master's Reach.
Chris Wilson's new ARPG won't be as big as Path of Exile, making him worry fans will say "'all this…Grinding Gear Games co-founder Chris Wilson stated that his new action-RPG, developed by his studio Light Pattern, will be significantly smaller in scope than Path of Exile. Wilson expressed concern that fans might be disappointed by the smaller scale, especially given the studio's small team size and his self-funding of the project. The game is still years away from announcement and will be developed in stealth.- MMO Business Roundup: EA’s latest layoffs, Overwatch’s pricy cosmetics, and GAAS nuanceThis business roundup covers recent events in the MMO industry, including layoffs at Electronic Arts affecting recruitment, customer support, trust and safety, and IT teams. Former Path of Exile developer Chris Wilson shared nuanced views on live service games, acknowledging drawbacks like problematic monetization and player demands. Additionally, Overwatch's high-priced Nyan Cafe cosmetic skins have drawn community backlash.
Path of Exile 2's incredible new build guide feature just got even easier to useGrinding Gear Games has enhanced the in-game build guide feature for Path of Exile 2 with a new subscription system, allowing players to automatically update imported builds. This update aims to simplify the process for new and existing players, especially those on consoles who previously faced difficulties with manual file management. The developers are working to resolve initial deployment issues on consoles.
Diablo 4 finally adds a mode it should have had on day one, but all I can think about is skinny RoadhogDiablo 4's Season of Death Awakening (Season 14) introduces significant endgame updates including proper leaderboards and the long-awaited Solo Self-Found mode. The season also features new 'Ruptures' mechanic, a free Warlock class trial, and an Overwatch collaboration, though the latter has drawn mixed reactions. The expansion, Lord of Hatred, has been praised for improving the game's structure and story.
Path of Exile used to think 'live service was entirely upside, in all cases', but 10 years of experience and games like Baldur's Gate 3 have shown him another wayChris Wilson, co-creator of Path of Exile, has re-evaluated his stance on live service games, acknowledging their drawbacks after a decade of experience and observing titles like Baldur's Gate 3. While he initially saw live service as purely beneficial, he now recognizes the complexities of community feedback and the pressures of constant updates, noting that finished, single-player games offer a different, valuable experience.- Path of Exile co-creator "would have scoffed at something like Baldur's Gate 3" 10 years ago, but now he knows why live service isn't necessarily "the future"Chris Wilson, co-founder of Grinding Gear Games, has re-evaluated his stance on live-service games, admitting he would have dismissed titles like Baldur's Gate 3 a decade ago. While Path of Exile exemplifies a player-friendly live-service model, Wilson now acknowledges the drawbacks of the monetization strategy and the pressures it creates, contrasting it with the appeal of complete, finished games.
What to do with the Depleted Mana Rune in Path of Exile 2The Depleted Mana Rune is a rare endgame secret in Path of Exile 2 that can be transformed into the Infused Mana Rune by defeating the Uhtred boss and having a build with 10,000 Mana. This Infused Mana Rune can then be traded to Farrow for the Runeseeker's Call Runic Fork, a powerful Ezomyte Wand, and unlocks the spell The Stars Answer.
Steam Week in Review: spammy, AI-generated capsule art is a pox, and it makes browsing Steam less funThe proliferation of AI-generated capsule art on Steam is diminishing the browsing experience, making it harder to discover genuine indie gems. This trend creates a disconnect between appealing art and actual game quality, potentially leading to wasted time and a less enjoyable user experience for curious players.- Path of Exile 2 beefs up its endgame with Patch 0.5.3Grinding Gear Games has released Patch 0.5.3 for Path of Exile 2, introducing significant improvements to the game's endgame. The update includes new introductory questlines, better rewards for bosses and Breaches, and adjustments to Delirium, aiming to make the online ARPG more rewarding and improve overall gameplay flow.
Classic ARPG fans, rejoice - Titan Quest 2's fourth chapter is here, and it's the biggest yetGrimlore Games has released Chapter 4, the largest update yet for their early access Action RPG, Titan Quest 2. This update introduces a new region, expanded quests, dungeons, and enemies, alongside a raised level cap and new passive abilities. The update also includes quality-of-life improvements such as multiplayer text chat and a loot filter, with the game currently available at a 30% discount on Steam.
Path of Exile's most unique league is back with a chaotic, class-fusing twistGrinding Gear Games is launching a new Path of Exile event called 'Return of the Ancestors' on June 25th, combining the squad-building mechanics of Trial of the Ancestors with the alternate Phrecian ascendancy classes from Legacy of Phrecia. This event serves as a bridge to the Path of Exile 3.29 reveal in mid-July and requires players to create a fresh character.