Path of Exile has developed into an extremely popular action RPG since its release in October 2013. We take a look at the history of the game, which many now consider the “better Diablo”.
On October 23, 2019, Path of Exile celebrated its sixth anniversary. For six years, this action RPG has been delighting players.
Every year, several major updates, new seasons, and for the future, a leap to version 4.0 is planned, which is set to transform the hack ‘n slash into a kind of Path of Exile 2.
But let’s look back at the creation and development of the game.
Path of Exile as a Counter-Movement to Diablo 3
How was the hack ‘n slash created? Path of Exile was developed by a group of Diablo fans who were dissatisfied with modern hack ‘n slashes. While Diablo 2 had a very complex game system and corresponding gameplay, Blizzard simplified many systems for part 3 to make the genre more casual-friendly and accessible to more players.
With Path of Exile, the team at Grinding Gear Games aimed to go in the opposite direction.
Path of Exile was planned as a deep action RPG that requires investment. Nevertheless, it was intended to convince players with fast and action-packed battles.
The Development of a Hit
It all began: In January 2013, the beta test of the RPG started. On October 23, the official release took place. Right from the beginning, it was evident that a very ambitious team was behind the game, which had its heart in the right place. Path of Exile was released as a free-to-play game for PC.
Through microtransactions, it is possible to purchase cosmetic items. Players find the system fair and are happy to support the developers with a purchase or two in the shop.
How did it achieve success? Every year, updates follow that are partly based on feedback from players. This shows how closely the developers work with the community. This is one reason why Path of Exile is so celebrated. Players feel heard, not ignored. This led Grinding Gear Games to announce in September 2014 that Path of Exile had more than seven million players by now.
The updates continually bring new content to the game, including:
- a hideout for players
- more story
- the Ascendancy classes for hero development
- and balancing optimizations.
Typically, updates coincide with the start of a so-called “league”. These leagues are usually well received. They offer new challenges for players to tackle several times a year.
This keeps Path of Exile current, and players receive new content regularly and not too far apart. The developers incorporate interesting ideas into the hack ‘n slash to keep the community engaged.
Even in case of problems, the team responds and provides assistance. For a while, melee fighters in Path of Exile were not really effective, but the team addressed this issue. The update “Legion” was released on June 7, 2019, bringing the long-awaited revision of melee fighters.
All this shows that the developers react to criticism and feedback from fans to improve Path of Exile in line with the community and regularly deliver new content. This is an important factor that significantly contributes to the success of the action RPG.
In the meantime, not only has the Xbox One version of the game been released, but Path of Exile is also playable on the Playstation 4. This now means Grinding Gear Games is additionally reaching console players, thereby expanding the reach of the action RPG.
The Future is Secured
Despite criticism, a hit: Not every update of Path of Exile was well received. “Synthesis”, for example, was only celebrated when it was finally over due to significant balancing issues, the rewards not being very useful, and the challenges feeling poorly thought out. Nevertheless, fans remain loyal to the hack ‘n slash.
This is because Path of Exile simply strikes a chord with players. The complex skill system allows for diverse hero development. It is fun to explore the world together with friends. The battles are exciting and quick.
The acts tell a good story. For many, Path of Exile is simply exactly what they hoped for after Diablo 2 from Diablo 3. Moreover, the developers regularly release updates and respond to players’ wishes. If something doesn’t go well, it typically receives a quick fix.
Additionally, Path of Exile is not highly polished like many AAA games. It has its rough edges and requires significant time to master. This adds to the charm of the game.
Even when Chinese gaming giant Tencent bought 80 percent of the developer studio Grinding Gear Games in May 2018, fans remained loyal to the company. And this, despite many players expressing concerns and fearing that pay-to-win elements would find their way into the game. However, so far, there has been little noticeable influence from Tencent.
This is how successful the action RPG is: According to community opinion, Path of Exile continues to develop well. Taking Steamcharts as a basis, one can see how popular the hack ‘n slash became over time. From a peak of 34,371 simultaneous players in October 2013, the game reached a peak of 123,462 simultaneous players in December 2018.
And these are just the players of the Steam version. However, Path of Exile can also be played via its own launcher and even on PS4 and Xbox One.
It Continues
What comes next? This is already looking forward to the release of update 3.9.0, which is planned for the end of the year. It is said to be the largest expansion this year. 3.9.0 introduces the following:
- A new, yet secret league
- New items that will affect your character builds
- Bows will be revised to better balance ranged characters
- New skills, balancing adjustments, and further divination cards are also planned
Players can try out update 3.9.0 on November 16 and 17 at Exile-Con, with the release currently planned for December 7.
Path of Exile 4.0 Aims to Stand on Par with Diablo 4
When is Path of Exile 2 coming? The greatest expansion is yet to come. Grinding Gear Games is currently hard at work on version 4.0.0. There will be a glimpse of this at Exile-Con. The developers have not revealed much about version 4.0.0 yet, but it is said to be a kind of “next-gen” version of Path of Exile.
This is supposed to elevate the action RPG and the entire genre to a new level and compete with the recently announced Diablo 4. Path of Exile 4.0.0 does not yet have a release date.
As you can see, Path of Exile has had a long and interesting journey. It started as a project intended to bring more complexity to the hack ‘n slash genre and has been able to transform from a kind of “underdog” to an enormously successful and popular game, with fans eagerly anticipating each addition.
