Developers of Path of Exile 2 Speak Out on Their Most Challenging Update

Path of Exile 2: Dawn of the Hunt has faced some turmoil since its first major update hit after launching in early access last year. When players eagerly logged in last Friday to check out the update, they found themselves up against a game that suddenly felt unreasonably tough. Take the weaker monsters in the early campaign hours, for instance—they became cumbersome to beat, and the debut of the Huntress class left much to be desired. Disgruntled players flocked to Reddit with posts like “This game feels like a massive waste of time” and “Game feels miserable,” and popular streamers made no bones about quitting the game mid-stream.

In an effort to quell the unrest, Grinding Gear Games quickly dispatched several patches. These updates aimed to make the game a little fairer by reducing the life of monsters and enhancing underperforming skills like skeletal minions. However, for many players, the tweaks haven’t resolved the core issue of the game feeling unrewarding.

Grinding Gear Games addressed these concerns in a recent post, outlining plans for further changes over the coming weeks. The primary focus is on the campaign’s ponderous pacing, which players are expected to endure every time a new season starts. While some fixes are already in place, players are still struggling to muster the enthusiasm to advance far enough to explore the endgame dungeons.

In a candid discussion with streamer Zizaran on Tuesday, game director Jonathan Rogers stated, “I can absolutely tell you that our goal here was to nerf the things that were trivializing the endgame before you’ve even managed to get your items and stuff like that.”

Game director Mark Roberts chimed in too, acknowledging, “There were some blatant errors, speaking bluntly,” as he reflected on the underwhelming skills that were swiftly hotfixed. “We’re taking a shot in the dark a lot here, so our approach is to implement changes, observe player feedback, and if something doesn’t work, we’re willing to reverse it.”

Rogers also highlighted a fundamental challenge with PoE 2 compared to its predecessor, PoE 1. “I think a running theme with PoE 2 in general is that the target to hit is smaller because if we want the combat to be more engaging, then that means there’s a smaller target; it puts more pressure on the balance to be right.”

The aim with PoE 2 is to develop a system that doesn’t solely reward veterans who’ve invested countless hours mastering the original game. They aspire to infuse PoE 2 with the calculated, dodge-roll-heavy combat characteristic of a Soulslike. Harder, but rewarding gameplay is the goal.

The team is actively investigating ways to alleviate the difficulty bursts but remains cautious about tipping the scales too far—where players can rush through dungeons in a heartbeat without confronting any genuine challenges.

Ultimately, as Rogers succinctly put it, “If we get to the point where a good player never has to face a single challenge ever, then I don’t think that’s going to be a game that will be ultimately fun in the long term.” The overarching challenge is to strike a balance, ensuring the game is enjoyable and fulfilling for the long haul.