It’s going to be a while before you can play Path of Exile 2.

When Path of Exile was first conceived, Grinding Gear Games (GGG) was a very small company. The studio has grown immensely over the years and in a way, its growth mirrored the game’s path in the ARPG genre and industry. We’re close to a decade already since the release of Path of Exile; it has undergone a lot of transformations and phases (such as the addition of the PoE market), making it one of the most successful and long-standing games to have ever existed. Heck, Path of Exile even surpassed colossal games like Diablo 3 – the very game that it took its inspiration from. In 2019, Grinding Gear Games held the ExileCon, an event dedicated to all things Path of Exile and its future. This is where Path of Exile 2 was announced, and as you might’ve guessed, everyone went bonkers when the news broke.

What to Expect in Path of Exile 2

GGG has been fairly open with how development is going, and they’ve even hinted that we can expect a beta to arrive. The sequel to Path of Exile will essentially be the same game, but players now have the option to choose which campaign to run. What’s more, the playable characters in Path of Exile 2 will be new ones, all with their respective Ascendancy classes. So far, we’ve had the chance to take a look at the character selection and types of PoE currency thanks to PoE 2’s official trailer which can be viewed on YouTube. From what we’ve seen, your chosen hero is the only survivor of a mass public hanging – not exactly a great way to start the day, but it’s nice to see that dark, hopeless tone that PoE is known for. Another trailer was released for Path of Exile 2 on April 2021, giving us more details about the world known as the Vastiri Desert region.

Overhauls for Path of Exile 2

PoE 2 is set 20 years after the death of Kitava, and society is slowly re-building. Along with that, ambitious men rise to fill the void, and their thirst for power once again corrupts the world of Wraeclast. As stated before, character models and Ascendancy classes will be reworked for the sequel. There will be 19 additional Ascendancy classes; these will be initially exclusive to the new storyline, but once they’re unlocked, they can be accessed in the first game as well.

Not to be forgotten, skill gems and sockets will also receive the rework treatment. Skill gems will receive a variable number of sockets, and players can have up to 6 sockets as items did previously. Meanwhile, the changes for the sockets won’t be as substantial. Similar to the current situation for PoE, the number of sockets possible on a skill gem will be dependent on the item level.

From 2022 to 2024

Path of Exile 2 was set to release sometime in 2022, but due to the lack of environmental artists at GGG and the pandemic, Chris Wilson stated in a Baeclast episode that the release date is going to be 2024 or slightly before that. A delay of two years is nothing to scoff at, and this decision is most likely not a light-hearted one at the end of Grinding Gear Games. The New Zealand-based developers also had to deal with many unhappy players with the releases for PoE during that time such as the balance changes and nerfs handed out in Expedition.

There’s a light at the end of the tunnel, at least. While we don’t have an exact date on the release of PoE 2 just yet, GGG stated on the official Path of Exile website that a beta could begin as early as 2022. Furthermore, in August 2021, the developers clarified that the team has already completed about 90% of the first act, and 75% of the second act of the game. It’s already been five months and with a total of seven acts announced for PoE 2, it’s estimated that GGG is already on the halfway mark.

Conclusion

That’s pretty much it! Grinding Gear Games hasn’t shared any info regarding an exact date for the beta release yet, most likely because they’re busy with the Siege of Atlas right now. One thing that we know for sure is that Path of Exile 2 won’t replace the original campaign; both the campaign that is currently out and the sequel’s will continue in the same game client. This means that players can transfer characters and accounts (including microtransaction purchases like PoE Currency) through both games. 

Are you excited about Path of Exile 2? Let us know down below!

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