Summary
Grinding Gear Games has started to showcase the full scope of its vision forPath of Exile 2, but during a recent interview, the stuio also offered some insight into the situation currently plaguingDiablo 4. Though the gaming community as a whole would consider the two franchises rivals,Path of ExileandDiablohave largely benefited from each other’s existence.Path of Exilewas born out of an admiration of whatDiablo 2did for the hack-and-slash genre, and for manyDiablofans, it was a refuge during the darkest days ofDiablo 3.
Eventually,Reaper of SoulsandPath of Exileestablished themselves as two philosophically different, yet equally successful pillars of the genre, and nowPath of Exile 2andDiablo 4are the second generation of this camaraderie. Thehighly-anticipated sequel toPath of Exileis shedding the systems bloat of its predecessor, and Grinding Gear Games has announced a Closed Beta for Summer 2024. By contrast,Diablo 4recently launched Season of the Malignant, its first post-release content, and player reception has been anything but stellar.
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In an interview with IGN during ExileCon 2023, director Jonathan Rogers reacted to the backlash that Blizzard was facing over its recent design choices, stating that it’s a hard learning process for running a live-service title with a Season format. Chris Wilson chimed in that there are times when a developer looks at features from its game, and realizes that it wants to slow things down. While this may explain thecurrent controversy inDiablo 4, the solution ultimately rests in Blizzard’s hands.
Rogers went on to say that he felt bad for the developers ofDiablo 4, and though he was certain that the game’s approach can be successful, it’s not the one he personally prefers. As a contrast toPath of Exile 2, Rogers claimed thatDiablo 4was on an MMO trajectory, citing it as the main difference between the two games. Longer cooldowns and a sprawling open world are right at home in Diablo 4, but are antithetical to the design philosophy inPath of Exile 2.
In terms of whatPath of Exilefans can expect in the sequel, it’s a bigger focus on combat, with a hardcore bent. Instead of juggling their cooldowns around,Path of Exile 2will allow players to always be in full control of their character, and react accordingly to the situation in front of them. Given the notoriety of balance tweaks thatPath of Exilehas endured over its lifespan, Rogers hopes that the team will get it mostly right during the Closed Beta. Though the game is over a year away,Diablo 4fans may findPath of Exile 2to be a worthwhile source of feedback for Blizzard to draw upon, as the hack-and-slash genre has long been at its strongest when both these franchises thrived.
Path of Exile 2is currently in development for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.
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