Why I Play Path Of Exile

Grinding Gear Games’ Path of Exile: The Awakening is already out and fans of the ARPG genre are crawling back to their keyboard and mouse—clicking away as if their lives depended on it. I wasn’t just yet.

I used to be on Path of Exile every waking minute of my life. I would try to kill just one more wave of enemies or complete a quick quest but ended up clearing a whole Act. Gems were addicting to collect like Pokemon cards. The hours of content and potential in Path of Exile blew me away, including free character selection, an expansive talent tree, and different ladders pertaining to difficulty levels! I was stunned and shocked a title this recent could bring back the nostalgia of Diablo days. These were my exact thoughts two years ago. My job was controlling most of my life but now I was ready to delve back into the forgotten lands. What brought me back to this beautifully crafted and dated graphic game? Is it a Nostalgia factor? Do I need a real ARPG fix?

The Real Reason Why

Actually, the real reason was from scrolling through my Steam Library and wondering what to play—we all should know this feeling. I spotted Path of Exile and wondered if it still retained the same nostalgic feeling I had two years ago. Surprisingly enough I was back to my old habits of slaying monkeys and exploding beetles with spell-powered gems. That’s when everything clicked. I began to realize the real connection between why I love Path of Exile and why I always come crawling back.

99% Free-To-Play

Honestly, Path of Exile is almost 100% Free-to-Play and not obnoxious by throwing ads on the computer monitor, shoving their product into my eye sockets. I write “almost 100%” because there is a small tab found near the bottom of the screen where certain armor, pets, or character buffs can be purchasable through microtransactions. Path of Exile doesn’t restrict players from advancing through another act by paying $10, or keep players from accessing certain areas. For once I’m able to relax and absorb everything without feeling as if I’m being drained from my wallet—like most MMOs.

The Good Ol’ Days!

I’ve been a Diablo veteran player since the 8th grade (16 years ago) and I remember slouching over my windows XP, Pentium 4 processor doing Barbarian hop-scotch over my best friend in the Cow Level. Treasured moments, but they didn’t seem to get any better as time let on when Blizzard began to merchandise most of their products through simple mechanics—almost to a point where stats were abysmal. Path of Exile retains the classic ARPG style not only through graphics but stats. The talent tree is immaculate like staring at an ancient scroll revealing a family history—only this was your history through your character. The story isn’t bland and progression seems as though it reaches no end through constant creation of different characters.

Community

Any MMO has to have a solid community in order to survive as successful game. Path of Exile has a thriving community and seems like it's still growing to this day. Rather than explain more about the detail of what the players of Path of Exile are to me, I would like to share what the players wrote when I asked, “Why do you like Path of Exile?”

Reaving-Map said, “Because it’s cancer, dude.”

Well, there you have it. Path of Exile is cancer and anyone touching it will be on the path of cancer. Seriously though, some players felt Path of Exile held diversity and immense story with developers constantly patching the content. One player by the username “Lingchi_The_Devourer” explained to me his reason why he has spent over 1,000 hours playing Path of Exile.

“As I have played Diablo and Diablo 2 I was always interested in the dark, gothic feel. When Diablo 3 came out I was insulted and disappointed in the game. It felt like I was playing a crummy version of WoW 2.5! Path of Exile is very much on the reality of human corruption and doesn’t shy away from showing it. The dynamic play style and builds makeup for depth, allowing people to experiment by trying new things— making replay vastly better.”

Many Hours Later…

Do I feel Path of Exile still retains the charm two years ago? Hold on, as I kill this dungeon boss and score some epic loot…

Yes, I believe fans of the series—new and old—will keep coming back to this ARPG until death do us part.