Path of Exile 2: Difficult and Violent: Hands-On Impressions from Summer Game Fest
Whether you’re a fan of the original or just action RPGs in general, Path of Exile 2 promises a dark and dangerous experience. You’ve been warned.
This weekend at Summer Game Fest, I had the opportunity to try Grinding Gear Games’ upcoming action RPG, Path of Exile 2. This sequel is the highly anticipated follow-up to the original Path of Exile from 2013. I had a lot more fun than I thought I would since action RPGs aren’t typically my go-to.
At the recommendation of one of the developers, I decided to try playing a monk, which ended up being a great choice. My first ability choice gave me the option to summon a giant bell that sends out a shockwave of damage every time it’s struck. At first glance, this was too unexpected and strange to pass up, but it ended up being very effective. I quickly became attached to my bell monk. Which is not a safe feeling in Path of Exile 2.
Path of Exile 2, Grinding Gear Games, 2024
I was able to easily clean up hordes of the early enemies, even making short work of an early mini-boss. But when giant mud golems started bursting out of cave walls I began to understand just how easy a monk was for enemies to take out. After many tries, I wasn’t able to defeat the demo’s boss. I say that with the hope that there wasn’t an even more challenging boss later on that the developers didn’t have the heart to tell me about.
Outside of the combat, the one moment that really blew my mind was when I opened up the skill tree and tried to zoom out. One of the devs saw my reaction and laughed, adding "It’s pretty expansive.” Which is underselling it. This is an RPG that really has the best of both worlds. You can have fun analyzing every path to take as your character progresses, or you can be like me and continuously whack a bell to solve all of your problems.
Path of Exile 2, Grinding Gear Games, 2024
Path of Exile 2 does not have a specific release date yet, but when it does launch in early access sometime soon, I’ll be excited to jump back in and bring back my bell monk. Or maybe try something completely different. It will be free to play so even if you’re not sure it’s the game for you, there’s no harm in giving it a try.
