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Game Review: Path of Exile (Video)
What ever happened to point-and-click action role-playing games? Blizzard set the standard for this genre around the turn of the century, and while a few companies have launched Diablo clones, it's been a pretty quiet market. Several years ago, a group of hardcore gamers decided to change that. They put together an independent game studio and began developing Path of Exile, an ARPG that would update and refine all of the characteristics that made the genre great. On 23 October, after a lengthy open beta period, they launched the game, opting for a free-to-play business model supported by ethical microtransactions. It's dark, freewheeling, unashamedly complex — and a lot of fun. In this video review (with transcript), we take a look at what Path of Exile has to offer.
What they mean is that it's not pay-to-win, unlike many other "free" games. Almost all purchasable items are purely cosmetic (skins, special effects, non-fighting pets that follow you) and have no gameplay effect, apart from one: extra stash tab to store items. These are nice to have, but not necessary to roll a successful character.
My first program:
Hell Segmentation fault
and it's a fun game, far better than D2
Obviously you need to like lick and kill games.
The Kruger Dunning explains most post on
to point and click RPGs? You mean like Torch Light and Torch Light II?
I've played this game for a while. I'm surprised a review is being done so late. Maybe I misread but if you are wondering how
the ftp system is, then I can enlighten on that. This game did surprisingly well on it's in game purchases setup compared
to other ftp games i've played that require you to buy items to really progress anywhere. This game is not like that. The item
drops themselves are the only real currency in the game. Anything you can buy from the cash shop is only for personal preference.
These include extended storage space and costume/aesthetic items. Nothing you buy in the cash shop will make you any better
than any other player. You need to actually play the game to get better. You cannot simply buy your way to the top which is very
nice coming from games like ROM which force you to buy countless items to even reach a moderate endgame level. Just wanted to
clarify this for people interested in the game as it is a pretty good game. Anyone familiar with diablo will feel right at home
as it's pretty much the closest thing to a direct diablo clone as you will find. I've heard some people refer to it as
Diablo 3...done right. That's all I have for now.
The only real downside I experienced is that the client will occasionally desync from the server, so your character will seem to be in another place than it really is. It doesn't happen too often, but it's an annoyance when it does
Early on, I had the same thoughts regarding the desync issues ("it's so rare, doesn't seem too bad"). However, as I progressed to higher difficulties with a lot more enemies on screen with a lot more going on, it got really bad. It's nice that there's a workaround if you suspect it's happening ('/oos' in the chat window), but on more than one occasion a boss/mob has murdered me while I was elsewhere in the map.
It is excellent if you like Diablo and can tolerate (thrive in!) a fairly complex ruleset.
The user interface is simple and slick. The graphics are nice looking. The gameplay is solid.
One thing I appreciate is that, although complex, the rules are very consistent and sensible. When I got "increased projectile damage" it worked on every single projectile I used, regardless or source (spell, bow, thrown 2H sword).
The character generation lets you pick'n' mix from potentially every class, but not without cost. It is easy to build a bad character, so for long term success you have to "win" the character building as well as the combat. It really delivers on multiclassing, but it is up to you to build a good character.
The microtransactions are all cosmetics and UI convenience. I consider myself quite discriminating about this sort of thing, and it doesn't bother me any. You have a limited inventory shared between all your characters, and it is possible to purchase more inventory. You could argue that this is a kind of pay to win, based on the statistical nature of the loot drops and the fact that a larger inventory could give an advantage in terms of retaining potentially valuable items. FWIW I dropped $20 and got max inventory and a cosmetic.
Probably the only downside to this game is a "feature" called desync, which is exactly what it sounds like: client and server worlds diverge, then the client gets suddenly and spectacularly corrected. IMHO this issue is neither frequent nor annoying. It seems to affect some powers more than others. If you are playing hardcore (one life) you might rage quit.
No Mac client, but it appears to work satisfactorily in Wine.