Path of Exile is a 3D Action RPG produced and developed by Grinding Gear Games, an independent New Zealand-based studio. It was released for Microsoft Windows on 23 October 2013. Path of Exile entered open beta testing in January 2014. 

Fighting for Survival and Redemption

Path of Exile is set in a dark fantasy world. With a focus on visceral action combat, powerful items, and deep character customization. Join thousands of other exiles as you explore Wraeclast, a dark continent riddled with Dungeons, crazy gods, and monsters. 

Engaging Combat System Made Better with Skill Gems

Combat is based around action points, which allow you to perform actions like attacking, moving, and using skills. The skill system allows for great versatility in characters, and many builds are possible depending on how players want to customize their characters. The skill tree contains passive nodes that help your character and active nodes that unlock abilities such as fireballs or summons. 

There are even special class-specific passives to help define your class further. Because there are so many different options available, finding what works best for you is essential to succeeding in combat situations. It took me a few hours to finally find the most convenient skills for my character, but the game became much more exciting once I did. 

Generate Enough Skills to Fight Even the Most Brutal Monsters

One major component of Path of Exile’s gameplay is Skill Gems. It features many ways to make your character more powerful, even better skills to use in battle, and different types of items that can be discovered or crafted.

These socketed items grant unique abilities to your character and can be leveled up and customized, giving you an extra incentive to hunt down certain monsters or search every chest you find on a map. You can even trade them with other players if you come across one that fits your playstyle better than another. There are hundreds of gems in the game, each with its special ability—and more are added with each new expansion pack Path of Exile releases. The most exciting part is that If you ever get bored of one skill gem, it’s simple enough to swap it out for another.

Explore a Beautiful World Filled with Endless Possibilities of Action and Adventure

Path of Exile is Diablo 2 in an online setting with some improvements that make for a better gaming experience. One difference is Path of Exile’s random monster generation and item placement. The graphics are about as good as Diablo 2 when it first came out. 

There are over 100 hours of gameplay in Path of Exile alone, but that doesn’t include all of its expansions. With so much content available, many players get lost trying to decide what their next move should be. 

Exploring The Path of Exile Skill Tree

You’ll unlock the skill tree after completing Act 1, and it will help you flesh out your character by providing a wide array of paths to travel down. Deciding what to take from here is a matter of understanding how certain skills can synergize and work toward that goal. 

It’s also important to understand which stats you want, as some are more beneficial than others for different builds. For example, if you want to play an Elementalist build, then picking up Elemental Damage nodes will benefit your character; however, if you want to play a crit-based build, then picking up Critical Strike Chance nodes might be better suited for your goals.

Join a League for More Action and Collaboration

To start playing in a league, you’ll need to find an active one that fits your schedule and goals. Once I found a league that looked good enough for me, I went on to create my characters. The first thing I did was select classes for my characters since I used multiple characters. I noticed that not all classes are available in every league type. For example, if you’re looking to play as a Witch, but only Hardcore leagues allow Witches, then obviously, you won’t be able to choose that class. As a general rule of thumb, though, most classes are available in some leagues. 

After choosing my classes, I gave them some names. I couldn’t choose a suitable name, so I clicked on Auto-Generate Names until I finally found the perfect name. Once I assigned names to my characters, it was time to assign an aesthetic appearance to my characters and create a hideout. 

Earn Rewards by Fighting in Dungeons

There are no predefined dungeons or levels to explore, which can make for an intimidating learning curve for new players, but don’t worry—it also means you never run out of things to do! The first thing any player should do when starting a new character is head into town and buy as many skill gems as possible from vendors. These gems are your character’s skills; just slot them into your gear and watch them level up alongside your character. Your first major decision will be what type of build to pursue.

Character Selection and Customization

There are seven classes in Path of Exile: Templar, Witch, Marauder, Duelist, Ranger, Shadow, and Scion. Each has its unique playstyle and benefits from different skill gem combinations. As such, it’s important to spend some time learning about each class before deciding which one you want to play. Their skills and abilities differ depending on their specialty. For example, some classes are good at melee combat, while others are better at healing, swordsmanship, or even archery. 

Once you know how you want to play, start buying gems and socketing them into your equipment. Gems aren’t cheap so if you have limited funds, focus on getting ones that improve your survivability. Gems are color-coded based on their attributes: red for strength, green for dexterity, blue for intelligence, and yellow for resistance. You can only equip four at a time, so choose carefully! It may take some trial and error to get a feel for how certain builds work together, but it’s worth it when you finally succeed. 

Conclusion

With Path of Exile, developers Grinding Gear Games have created some fairly simple concepts from games like Diablo 2 and executed them with extreme precision. The result is an action RPG that offers many features, a fantastic (and free) business model, and an awesome game world to explore with friends. If you’re looking for a new game to play or want something fun to fill your evenings with, do yourself a favor and give Path of Exile a try!