Path of Exile 2 makes buildcrafting more approachable than ever—but I'm glad I can still sleepwalk through screenfuls of skeletons in the original

Despite the 500 hours of playtime I've accrued over the years, I've always been a pretty casual Path of Exile player. In PoE, 500 hours is rookie numbers: The infamous sprawl of its passive skill tree and labyrinthine gear crafting mechanics still border on the unfathomable to me. For players who aren't instinctively horrified by having to do any amount of math, PoE is an expansive canvas for buildmaking artistry; for me, it's the world's largest character build buffet. I've been standing comfortably on the shoulders of theorycrafting giants—until now.

Thanks to Path of Exile 2's revamped skill systems, I've finally been digging deeper into the fertile loam of buildcrafting with my own hands. As those systems have become more approachable, however, the rest of the sequel's only grown more demanding—and I've only felt glad that it hasn't replaced the original.

Because of how hard it could be to change tracks with your character, PoE 1 often felt like it expected me to commit to a build before I started playing. Straying from a build guide felt like I risked futile investments in passive points and gear that I'd eventually regret—mistakes that might take hours of currency grinding to fix.

In PoE 2, those decisions feel less permanent, and as a result, I'm doing more experimenting. An NPC offers a respec option in exchange for gold; it's expensive, but it means I can nudge some points around if I've realized some adjustments to my passive skills would better suit the playstyle I've settled into. Meanwhile, because PoE 2 liberated skill gems from the PoE 1's colored gear sockets, I'm much more free to play around with different combinations of active abilities and the support gems that change their functionality.

It's refreshing to be sculpting my own build for a change. It's just a shame that the rest of the game expects a higher-intensity relationship from me than Path of Exile 1 and I ever shared.

Toughened up

The breadth of Path of Exile's build crafting toolkit meant you could set the game's skill floor to be as sweaty as you wanted it. When a new PoE 1 league was about to pop off, I could dig up a build guide to match whatever mood I was in, whether I wanted to casually facetank my way into mapping with a meaty Juggernaut, or felt like I actually wanted to pay attention to the attacks coming my way as any of the more fragile playstyles.

More often than not, I skewed towards the former. When I came to Path of Exile, it was to sate my desire to blow up entire screens of skeletons in the mode of my choosing and see loot tumble out of the ensuing wreckage. My last league character might've been vaporizing swaths of enemies with Divine Ire beams; maybe this time I'll try spraying shotgun blasts of shattered sword blades.

Those players who wanted more of a challenge had their high-tier maps and endgame Uber bosses; I was happy with flipping through the catalogue of potential builds for whatever flavor of dopamine fix I was craving, and then spend a dozen hours or so mulching hordes of fodder. Path of Exile had enough space for both of us. Path of Exile 2, however, sets its bar for execution a lot higher, even for basic gameplay—and while it's a bar I'm perfectly capable of clearing, the vibe shift isn't one I was looking for.

Gone are the six map portals of yesteryear; no longer do you get to pick up a boss's health bar where you left off when you beef it. PoE 2 has gone full-on soulslike in its boss fight sensibilities. Player characters are, as a rule, more fragile; the hits come fast, they come hard, and one poorly-timed dodge roll when your opponent's on their last legs can mean you've got to start the whole thing fresh.

Don't get me wrong, those fights are excellent. They're tense, rewarding engagements against visually impressive enemies. They're fun as hell! But they're not the fun I came to Path of Exile for.

Casual complaints

Not everyone's seeking high intensity in their playtime. Path of Exile 1 could be a low-pressure hang, like a friend I'd be willing to spend time with after a long day of work. PoE 2, meanwhile, is trying to talk me into a hard-won struggle, promising glory in blood and woe—in defeat beaten into the hot, hard-edged shape of victory. I'm happy for everyone who's on board for that, but I just got off a nine-hour shift and I kinda just wanted to blow up a few hundred goat men without really needing to think about it, and see what color pants fall out.

Where Path of Exile provided others with a challenge to conquer, I was content with the satisfaction of watching how its universe of nesting, stacking modifiers could turn a combat skill into a one-button apocalypse. In PoE 2, while I've found it easier than ever to mold those modifiers into a build, it's in service of someone else's fantasy.

Luckily, my ideal ARPG's still around. Grinding Gear Games isn't replacing Path of Exile 1 to keep all its players in one manageable live-service pool. I'm spared the fate of the Overwatch 2 and Counter-Strike 2 players who preferred the previous iterations: I'm not forced to play the new company model because it's as close as I can get to the game I want to be playing, quietly simmering with frustration over how it's not close enough.

We're still in the early days of PoE 2's early access. Some of the ramped-up difficulty might become opt-in over time, carving out more of a space for its casual players. If not, I'm happy to leave the dodge rolling with those who'll get the most from it. Of course, I've been poisoned by knowledge: Playing the original PoE now means I'll be keenly aware of the additional buildmaking freedom I could be enjoying in PoE 2. Hopefully, sleepwalking through a few dozen screenfuls of skeletons will ease the sting.