Path of Exile 2 is an action RPG from Grinding Gear Games and the sequel to 2013’s Path of Exile. Read our review of its early-access build to see what it did well, what it didn't do well, and if it's worth buying.
Everything We Know About Path of Exile 2
Path of Exile 2 Story Plot
While specific details about Path of Exile 2's story are still under wraps, here’s what we do know: the game introduces a six-act campaign, immersing players in a rich new journey before they reach the endgame. From there, they’ll have over 100 unique maps to explore and a host of powerful bosses to conquer, ensuring countless hours of challenging content.
Path of Exile 2 Gameplay
Path of Exile 2 offers fast-paced combat set in a dark, top-down world. Players take control of Exiles through sprawling, hostile landscapes. Combat styles are very customizable, with the use of Skill Gems that allow players to change the properties of their abilities, and up to 5 Support Gems per Skill Gem to fine tune their effects. This creates a dynamic combat experience, where every encounter can be tailored to a player’s strategy, offering high-intensity gameplay that rewards planning and experimentation.
Customization is a core element of the Path of Exile 2 experience. The game features an expansive skill tree and a robust system for personalizing skills. Each character has access to a plethora of skills, along with equipment and gear that can radically change how those skills behave. The new Dual-Specialization system further enhances this by letting players mix abilities from different skill trees, creating an almost infinite number of combinations to suit a variety of playstyles.
Endgame content in Path of Exile 2 allows players to engage in various content that features formidable enemies. Additionally, the endgame features a hundred new and unique maps to explore for greater rewards and tougher challenges.
Path of Exile 2 Review [Early Access]
The Diablo IV We’ve Always Deserved
Once upon a time, it was a rare heartbreak to see a beloved game franchise stumble so hard it alienated its own fans. Nowadays, though, it feels almost routine. Equally common is another franchise swooping in to save the day, stepping into the void left behind. Case in point: Diablo IV faceplants spectacularly, and Path of Exile 2 rides in as the shining knight to rescue action RPG fans everywhere.
There’s plenty to unpack in this review of Path of Exile 2’s early-access build. So, grab your gear, double-check your keybinds, and join me as we dive headfirst into the long-awaited sequel to 2013’s action RPG classic and the Diablo IV we’ve always deserved.
Familiar Action RPG Mechanics in an Unfamiliar World
Let’s kick things off with how Path of Exile 2 plays. In many ways, it feels like a close cousin to Diablo, which explains the endless comparisons between the two. Players guide their character from a top-down, third-person perspective, venturing through sprawling, meticulously crafted dungeons brimming with loot, enemies, bosses, and various interactive elements.
At the outset, you’ll pick a class for your character—six options are available in the early-access build—and embark on your journey with little more than the clothes on your back and bare-knuckle determination. Gradual but constant rogression is the name of the game in Path of Exile 2. As you push forward, you’ll uncover powerful equipment, unlock and fine-tune new skills, and gradually grow into a more formidable adventurer. Every level earned enhances not just your character's capabilities but also your own mastery as a player.
The gameplay staples are comfortably familiar yet satisfyingly refined. Health and mana gauges? Check, with handy refillable flasks reminiscent of Dark Souls. Dodge rolls? Present and accounted for (also very Dark Souls). Skills can be mapped to an impressive variety of keys, letting you customize to your heart's content. Core RPG mechanics—armor, damage types, status effects—are alive and kicking, and gear can be scavenged from the world or snagged from vendors. It’s classic RPG goodness through and through.
Where Path of Exile 2 truly shines, however, is in the sheer depth and scope of its content. While Diablo has historically delivered robust gameplay experiences (at least, until recent missteps), Path of Exile 2—like its 2013 predecessor—takes it a step further. Its famously gargantuan skill tree and massive, labyrinthine maps elevate the experience to a scale that few games dare to match.
So Dense in Content, Not Even Diablo Could Compete
To truly grasp the enormity of Path of Exile 2’s offering, let’s break it down. The game is set to launch with a whopping 12 character classes, though its early access build mirrors Diablo IV’s six. Each class branches out into two subclasses—dubbed Ascensions—bringing the total to 24 unique permutations before we’ve even touched on its intricate progression systems.
And then there’s the skill tree—or more accurately, the skill web. If you thought the original Path of Exile had an expansive web of choices, its sequel takes that foundation and builds an even grander monument to customization. The web now spans an awe-inspiring 1,500 nodes, divided among six primary stats. Each class starts in its corresponding stat zone but can stretch into other areas of the web, with the level of effort required depending on your character’s starting point and where you’re trying to take them.
This sprawling structure offers nearly infinite possibilities for character-building. Want to craft a glass-cannon sorcerer with a splash of melee survivability? Go for it. Need to experiment with an unorthodox build just to see how far you can push the game’s mechanics? The tools are all there. The combination of 12 classes, 24 Ascensions, and this colossal skill web ensures no two characters need ever look—or play—the same.
Yet, content alone isn’t enough. All these systems and options would amount to little more than hollow distractions if the execution faltered. Thankfully, Grinding Gear Games didn’t just stop at making the game massive—they made it meaningful. The short answer to whether the game’s content quality matches its quantity is a resounding yes.
Executed its Equipment and Skill Systems Flawlessly
Path of Exile 2 doesn't just embrace RPG mechanics—it executes them handily, ensuring every choice feels intentional and empowering. Central to this achievement is the game’s polished and intuitive customization experience, particularly evident in its equipment system. Here, randomness is wielded thoughtfully—not as a greedy, anti-consumerist gacha ploy, but as a tool to keep gameplay dynamic and rewarding, with ample ways to bend that randomness to your will.
The game features a staggering variety of base items across all equipment slots: weapons, armor, flasks, and trinkets of every conceivable kind. These treasures can be found scattered throughout the world or purchased using in-game currency. But the real magic lies in their properties. Each item’s additional properties—ranging from flat stat boosts to percentage-based perks—are largely randomized, giving every piece a unique identity.
Some items arrive “unidentified,” their secrets hidden until revealed by a Scroll of Knowledge. Beyond that, a suite of auxiliary tools like weapon scraps, armor scraps, runes, and orbs of transmutation lets you shape your loot. These tools can enhance an item’s quality, stack on extra properties, or even transform mundane items into powerful magical ones. It’s a system as intricate as it is satisfying, striking a balance between discovery and player agency.
But the brilliance of customization doesn’t stop at gear—it extends to the game’s skills, which elevate personalization to a whole new level. Players can bind up to seven active skills at a time, a generous number for any action RPG. Each skill has a base level that can be upgraded using skill gems and can have up to five support gem slots, enabling you to add modifiers that enhance, tweak, or fundamentally alter their behavior. Want your lightning bolt to hit one harder in a smaller area? You got it. What about a hammer strike that completely rends enemy armor? Make it happen.
This isn’t just customization—it’s a playground for min-maxers and tinkerers alike, offering boundless opportunities to refine and perfect your build. And the genius lies in the separation between skill gems and the sprawling skill web. The web influences base stats and modifiers, while the gems dictate the core functionality of your abilities. This dual system ensures an almost limitless range of viable builds. Forget role-playing, this is role-creating!
Good Boss Fights, Even Better Sights and Sounds
Exceptional RPG mechanics are only part of what makes Path of Exile 2 shine. The game also brings its A-game with thrilling boss fights and combat encounters that ensure no moment feels stale. While the regular enemy fights are engaging in their own right, the boss battles truly steal the show.
Path of Exile 2’s bosses are plentiful, challenging, and undeniably dynamic. They don’t reinvent the wheel—like many in the vein of Dark Souls or Diablo, these encounters revolve around reading telegraphed attacks, managing positioning, and timing your dodge rolls. But what sets them apart is their sheer polish. Each battle is a visual and mechanical treat, with every move feeling intentional and every victory hard-earned.
This excellence is a direct result of the game’s stellar art direction, fluid animations, and immersive audiovisual presentation. Bosses move with a sense of weight and purpose that makes every encounter feel visceral and electrifying, even if it’s your thirtieth attempt at taking them down. The characters and armor pieces are meticulously detailed, with a well-worn aesthetic that adds authenticity to the game’s gritty world. The environments, meanwhile, are breathtakingly rendered, with maps that feel alive despite their desolation.
The sound design ties it all together. Voice acting meets—and occasionally exceeds—industry standards, delivering performances that add depth to the game’s world. The music complements the gameplay beautifully, enhancing the atmosphere without ever becoming intrusive. It’s the kind of soundtrack that amplifies tension during combat and lingers in your mind long after you’ve logged off.
In short, Path of Exile 2 has an abundance of vibes—a carefully crafted, cohesive aesthetic that elevates every encounter. Whether you're marveling at the artistry of the environments or gripping your controller through a nail-biting boss fight, this game doesn’t just look good; it feels right. And that’s a feat worth celebrating.
Maybe A Bit Too Big
While Path of Exile 2 delivers an abundance of content, it’s not without its drawbacks. For one, the game is massive—and I don’t just mean in terms of scope and depth. This is a chonker of a title, tipping the scales at over 100 GB in its early access stage. If your hard drive is already feeling a bit snug, prepare for some serious shuffling—or a potentially heartbreaking uninstall of your other favorites. And keep in mind, this is just the appetizer. The full release is bound to take up even more digital real estate.
Then there’s the time commitment. This isn’t the kind of RPG you knock out in a weekend. No, Path of Exile 2 demands dedication, with playthroughs stretching well into the dozens—if not hundreds—of hours. While this isn’t a strict mark against the game’s quality, it does significantly narrow its audience to those who can afford to invest that kind of time.
Adding to this is the game’s grind-heavy nature, which is very much by design. This is a game that revels in its grind, celebrating the slow burn of progression and the satisfaction of eking out incremental improvements. It’s a philosophy that many players will appreciate—but it’s also one that others will struggle to fit into their schedules. A modest gaming session of, say, three hours a day? That’s a mere drop in the ocean, particularly as you move into the late game, where the pace slows even further.
To be clear, these aren’t failings—they’re simply realities of a game this ambitious. But they’re worth keeping in mind. If you’re someone who relishes the marathon over the sprint and has the storage space (and the patience) to match, Path of Exile 2 is a treasure trove waiting to be explored. For everyone else, though, it’s a reminder that sometimes, bigger isn’t always better—or at least, not always practical.
Already Better Than Diablo IV (Not That the Bar Was High)
Path of Exile 2 isn’t just a great game—it’s a monumental achievement that builds on its predecessor’s foundation while setting a new standard for action RPGs. It’s a title that doesn’t just overshadow Diablo IV—it slam dunks on it, and let’s be honest, that wasn’t exactly a high hurdle to clear.
With its overwhelming density of content, meticulous execution, and genuine care for the player’s experience, Path of Exile 2 is a juggernaut of a game. It’s a sprawling adventure that I’d gladly carve out room for in both my hard drive and my schedule—provided I have enough of either to spare.
And the best part? This is just the beginning. The game is still in early access, with more content, refinements, and expansions on the horizon. Every month of development promises something new, and I, for one, can’t wait to see where Grinding Gear Games takes this.
This is more than a game—it’s a masterclass in how to respect and reward your players. Path of Exile 2 isn’t just good enough to make you ask, “What’s Diablo IV?” It might just make you question, “What’s Diablo even for?” Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to free up some hard drive space.
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Path of Exile 2 Product Information
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|
| Title | PATH OF EXILE 2 |
|---|---|
| Release Date | December 6, 2024 |
| Developer | Grinding Gear Games |
| Publisher | Grinding Gear Games |
| Supported Platforms | PC (Steam), PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S |
| Genre | Action, RPG, Adventure |
| Number of Players | 1-2 |
| ESRB Rating | RP |
| Official Website | Path of Exile 2 Website |
And the best part? This is just the beginning. The game is still in early access, with more content, refinements, and expansions on the horizon. Every