The new expansion Path of Exile: Harvest has started. The league caused a significant increase in player numbers on Steam with its rather unusual approach.
This is the new expansion: On the night from Friday to Saturday, the new Path of Exile expansion “Harvest” launched. The name is program, as the focus of the league is the “Sacred Grove” – a kind of mysterious garden.
It was discovered by the new NPC Oshabi, who asks for your help with gardening. More specifically: You need to collect seeds, plant them in the grove, nurture them with life energy, and then harvest them. The twist: From the seeds arise enemies that you literally have to “farm.”
This is how farming in the garden works: You can choose from three different types of seeds:
- Vivid
- Primal
- Wild
They come in three tiers, which become increasingly difficult to obtain and raise depending on their level. Of course, better seeds also offer stronger rewards.
To ensure everything blooms and thrives, you will also perform some construction work on the garden. For example, you can lay pipes to supply your plants with nutrients.
For those who think Path of Exile has suddenly become an Animal Crossing clone, there is no need to worry. After all, you are not planting pear trees here, but full-grown enemies that need to be defeated.
Depending on the type, quantity, and location of the seeds, different monsters will arise from your seeds – you can thus partially control what to expect in the boss fights. With the right combinations, you can breed the ancient beasts Ersi, Janaar, and Namharim.
At the end of the fights, different rewards await you. Additionally, the new league brought several new features. You can see what they look like in our comprehensive overview of Path of Exile: Harvest.
Unusual approach attracts players to Steam
Path of Exile sees a significant increase: The unusual expansion Harvest has evidently sparked a lot of curiosity in the Path of Exile community. This was demonstrated by a dramatic rise in player numbers on Steam:
(via Steam Charts)
In the past week, the player counts of Path of Exile on Steam usually fluctuated between 7,000 and 13,000 players, averaging 15,537 players in the last 30 days. With the release of Harvest, it then surged dramatically, peaking at 125,432 players. This is the second highest value ever.
Will the new gardening keep players engaged? Such a jump is not completely new for Path of Exile. Regularly, in a three-month rhythm, player counts rise – every time new expansions are on the horizon. The last, Delirium, set even the PoE Steam record with 132,508 players at peak, the highest value so far. After that, it steadily declined – until the release of Harvest.
Slightly more than 7,000 players are needed for a new record. While it is unlikely that this will be broken this season, it is not impossible either. If gardening and monster-slicing in Path of Exile isn’t for you, but you’re looking for a good game to play with two, check out the best free online co-op games to play in 2020.
