PoE 2 NOT like PoE 1 Please

This is my first post after 5 years of playing.
I'll start by saying that I'm aware that it's an early access and it's just come out so I can't draw hasty conclusions, however based on what I've seen so far I'd like to express some feedback that perhaps many of you won't agree with: this game has now become PoE 1.
After just a few weeks there are already builds that make the entire map explode with one button, bosses that are designed to be a challenge with lethal shots to dodge, they die even faster than in PoE 1.
I had a lot of fun with the campaign, beautiful graphics, immersive settings, fun classes and combat system, and above all it tooks its time.
Now in endgame I'm experiencing the same feeling as its predecessor.
I know that's exactly what the developers didn't want, so I hope they stick to their opinion and don't give in to the fact that players can appreciate this type of playstyle.
I'd be curious to know your opinion, in the hope that it'll also be read by a developer.
Sorry for the wall of text and have fun playing.

Kama

I'd love for it to be more like PoE1 in some ways (more crafting options, more league mechanics, less punishing mapping mechanics, less unbalanced ascendency trials, better build diversity, more robust passive tree), but I agree that this is one way in which it should be less like PoE1.

I agree and I'm glad to see posts like this. I love the idea of PoE but when it became clear that the game direction was Zoom screen clear builds it just wasn't for me. All the video teasers of PoE2 really sold me on going in a slower, more tactical moment to moment gameplay direction. Act 1-3 3 on normal really delivers on that but then chars start to gradually get to the screen clearing direction.

I hope the devs clear this up and talk very explicitly on what their goals are for what endgame combat pace will look like. We know that they almost immediately nerfed the meta Cast on X gems which were screen clearing pretty easily so I hope they just keep doing that until builds all have to engage with mobs slowly and deliberately.

I agree and am also glad to see some posts like this in the general forum where they might not drown in the signal to noise ratio of the feedback forum.

Its really uncomfortable seeing spark archmage, and huge ES pool spell builds, tri-herald screen exploders and such. Its almost like they didn't learn ANY lessons from POE1. These exact things have trivialized 1 countless times.

I have no real confidence that GGG wont loose their intestinal fortitude for nerfing these things as severely as they need to to actually get POE2 endgame into a state where all this skill design, boss design, and the slower pacing, and better signaling makes sense and remains relevant.

Unfortunately I've already been through the clear speed wars of 016 to 017. I've already been on the losing side of this once. I already feel exhausted from the EA feedback forum. Not sure I'm got the energy. I was more confident when Chris hadn't been insulted away by the reddit bad faith mob but even Chris gave up trying to balance the game after that mess.

It must be a stressful thing when thousands of really angry redditors want you keep your game all dumb and 1 button-y. meanwhile people who want a more compelling game aren't angry and shouting about it and are too easily drowned out by the mob.

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alhazred70#2994 wrote:

Its really uncomfortable seeing spark archmage, and huge ES pool spell builds, tri-herald screen exploders and such. Its almost like they didn't learn ANY lessons from POE1. These exact things have trivialized 1 countless times.

You do realise that current endgame is balanced around having this stuff right?


If you dont and somehow manage to upgrade the atlas events, you are 100% unable to clear any of that stuff. Thats not even accounting for the 1 portal playstyle.

So yeah, players will cheese all the content by default.
Cant really be surprised this is the outcome of the systems in place.


That said, I struggle to understand why the campaign and late endgame are polar opposites. Doesnt make sense to me.

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Orbaal#0435 wrote:

That said, I struggle to understand why the campaign and late endgame are polar opposites. Doesnt make sense to me.

I agree, the campaign was a lot of fun and the endgame is really well done considering it's early access. I'm not a big fan of the one try portal, but I would gladly accept it if the rewards were worth the risk. I also struggled a lot to have sustainability of the maps, precisely because of this one try system.
But as I was saying, the thing that I'm most sorry about is the existence of these zoom zoom builds, which nullify the incredible work they've done on the characterization and mechanics of the bosses. The sense of having complex bosses with soulslike mechanics, lethal blows etc. is useless if they die in two seconds.
I'm happy to know that there are other people who think like me, I hope for a huge nerf of all these builds that scale excessively, to have an endgame that I can enjoy like the acts in the campaign.

+1

Totally agree!

The biggest problem here, is that PoE 2 can't really decide where it wants to go.

Outside of a couple of OP unique items, the movement speed (zoom?) is in an OK place in PoE 2. It is SO DAMN far from what's possible in PoE 1 (again, outside of these OP unique items) that even hinting towards it being "already PoE 1" is typical internet hyperbole.

But when certain league mechanics in PoE 2 throws hundred monsters at you, you DO need a way to clear these monsters without dying. I hope everyone can see that. So if they take away the ability to clear, they also have to reduce the amount of monsters in certain situations be 80%.

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I understand that some people want to fight one and one monster at a time, maybe even three and three monsters if they feel crazy. But I agree with Jonathan here, where he said that one of the clearest ways to make your character FEEL powerful, is the ability to beat larger and larger packs of enemies. If you constantly go around fighting 1 and 1 monster that scales to your level, you're never going to feel more powerful. And if you're going to fight larger and larger packs, you need the tools to do so.

Now, does the game ramp up too quickly? Probably. But no matter how you look at it, I think the game needs to ramp up during the endgame.

If you want to go around fighting one and one monster, or three and three if you feel crazy, and you don't want the game to ramp up, why are you playing the endgame at all? If the game is "the same" through 18 tiers of map, what is the point of progressing? I genuinely struggle to understand this, because if the game doesn't ramp up, you're never going to feel the power progression, and isn't that one of the main reasons to play the endgame; to get stronger and stronger, continue your character progression?

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The main issue in PoE 2 as of now, is Temporalis. Not only is it stupidly designed, letting you blink all over the map, but it also makes already great designed uniques OP.

The Polcirkeln/Herald explosions will probably get nerfed, and probably should (even though I think it's fun as hell to play). But if they go, A LOT of builds won't be able to clear Breaches.

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Phrazz#3529 wrote:

The Polcirkeln/Herald explosions will probably get nerfed, and probably should (even though I think it's fun as hell to play). But if they go, A LOT of builds won't be able to clear Breaches.

As it is currently, only meta screen nuke builds can efficiently clear breaches. If you don't have one button fast clear skill, you get swarmed instantly and die.

I'd say the biggest problem is really the stupid "spawn 50 monsters on top of you" mechanic everywhere. You can't choose your builds, you can't play "slow and methodical" like was the idea. I noticed it pretty fast that the thing that I hated most in Poe1 has been copied here without any changes.

We can all brag about the amazing complex passive skill tree, until we figure there's only 1 road to take really. Copy some aoe nuke spec from google or don't bother playing at all.