During ExileCon, Grinding Gear Games revealed that asPath of Exile 2grew since its announcement in 2019, they realized it was no longer just an expansion toPath of Exileas originally planned. With over 100 developers working onPath of Exile 2,it has become a much bigger project than originally anticipated. Moving forward,Path of Exile 2will now be its own standalone title. Each game will still be supported and have its own unique mechanics, leagues, and features.
However, microtransactions and cosmetics will be cross-compatible across both games unless it’s not possible. For example, Druid is an ascendancy inPoE2but not inPoE.Therefore, a Druid-specific cosmetic forPoE2 will not be available inPoEwhere Druid does not exist.
Path of Exile 2has evolved into its own standalone game
I was torn back in 2019 when Grinding Gear Games revealedPath of Exile 2as more of an expansion that would integrate with and extend the base game. I lovePath of Exile, but a big focus forPoE2appeared to be accessibility. Therefore, it seemed counter-intuitive to me to combine the two when it seemed they would each be a unique experience.
It certainly makes sense to support the two as separate games moving forward. Here’s the list of the current features forPath of Exile 2:
For comparison, the basePath of Exilecurrently has 19 ascendancy classes, 1,325 passive skills, and 276 active skills. This is with nearly a decade of updates and expansions under its belt, as well.
Furthermore, balance would have surely become an issue when integrating the two games with each other. With each having its own separate ascendancy classes, splitting the two game should hopefully streamline any ongoing balancing.
Grinding Gear Games announced that a closed beta forPath of Exile 2will launch on June 30, 2025. While a release date has yet to be announced, it looks like we might have to wait a while until this one’s officially launched.
