Path of Exile Review
With so many action RPGs out there, it can be hard to decide which one is the best to try out, but Grinding Gear Games managed to come with the perfect solution in the form of a free to play title that manages to take the genre to new heights. Path of Exile is a wonderful entry in this genre and one that manages to continually impress people from all over the world with interesting gameplay.
Basic Information
Path of Exile is a Diablo-like free game what is supported by “ethical microtransactions.” This means that they only offer vanity or cosmetic items in their cash shop. So if you are the type who absolutely hates pay to win games then you should definitely try out PoE.
Core gameplay is classic action RPG style. Using an overhead view, players battle monsters in different maps to get loot and experience.
Gameplay
The beginning stages in the game feel like an introduction, which is good to begin with, but as you progress the title really fleshes out a lot, and I love the way they manage to provide you with new challenges along the way.
I personally found that the most appealing factor in Path of Exile is the replayability, because you manage to get through the same content over and over again with new characters, and thus strategize in a whole new, different way. I am very fond of the way they chose to do this, and I enjoy the way they did it a lot.
The high amount of customizability here is quite good. Most MMOs aren’t that expansive in this regard, but you do get a ton of stuff in PoE so there’s tons of cool weapons and armor. Considering that you start barebones at first, the game does take you on one hell of a ride.
Using gems and sockets in order to empower your character is very nice, and the game does a great job in making things fun and cohesive as a whole. The rarities found in the game do make sense, and hunting for them is necessary, because they just can’t be found anywhere.
Adding in passives is a great thing as it truly manages to flesh out then game and it provides a whole new perspective on the way you play, which is a nice thing in this regard.
Moving onward to the game world, I like how they went with a darker tone instead of choosing a livelier one. Of course, this could have gone sideways, so it’s understandable why they went with a specific color code, and I liked it. The darkness and grittiness in the game world suit the action, and it’s just amazing.
The skill three is huge, and I mean that. It’s so large that it will take you quite a lot of minutes in order to understand it and obtain the direction you want.
I do feel that Path of Exile does a great job when it comes to providing you with a very good combat, although you do need a precise mouse, because I did misclick enemies and this particular thing did cause me the matches. It can be hard at first, but you will like the gameplay for sure as it’s really nice to get into and there are plenty of opportunities to test your skill.
I would have particularly liked if they could focus more on the side quests, because most of them just feel boring and not that interesting to begin with. Thankfully, the ability to fully customize your character does bring in a lot of joy, so in some ways this does manage to compensate things I guess.
The thing that’s truly cool about Path of Exile is the ability to chose a specific league or an alternate gameplay mode. There are the standard league (when you die you respawn) and the hardcore one where it’s game over when you die (you do respawn but in the standard league). Obviously the hardcore one is a lot harder to get into, and it does offer quite a lot of interesting stuff to do, I have to say, which makes it so much sweeter to actually be a part of it. There are a few temporary leagues that you can play in as well, and each one is active for a small period of time, mostly for testing purposes.
Performance-wise, the game does have a few issues running sometimes, and it also has a few bugs as well, but in the end you can have a pleasant experience while playing it and that’s all that matters. Sure, it could be better optimized as it can be quite the resource hog, but in the end it’s playable and you will rarely find issues that are game-breaking.
Regarding the PVP, Path of Exile does a great job in providing you with special places where you can kill your opponents, and the fun is guaranteed. Finding a good PVP match is easy, and the action here is frantic!
Graphics
From a graphics standpoint, the game is solid and it manages to provide a ton of variety. It’s nicely designed and very good looking with a dark and somewhat gloomy feel to it that might not suit all tastes. There are some regions where you have lots of light and stuff, but the character design and the game world as a whole is mostly dark. However, don’t expect super awesome, top-of-the-line HD graphics. It’s good enough but nothing jaw-dropping.
Conclusion
Overall, I found Path of Exile to be a solid game, which offers a lot of variety and a very good gameplay. This is one of those games that’s fully free, with the money being charged for extras that you don’t really need in order to play. It’s a great action RPG and just a fun game overall but, the most important thing, one of the best free games on the market!
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