Looking for fair and honest oppinions on Current state of game

So Haziza#1519, have you buy?

My opinion is:
- Sold off to Tencent
- Almost 1 year of development, still can't reach 144fps on ultra settings with 4080 Super / 7800X3D
- What they "fix" gets broken again in a new league. (and yes, I do mean the body blocking as well as ultra fast mobs that you can't do anything against)

3 are more than enough.

I personally think that 0.3 is a huuuuge upgrade for PoE 2.

I've been playing non-stop since launch and I had an absolute blast so far.
Campaign plays a looot better due to increased drop rates and better availability of currency and runes.

Loot overall feels really good now, I think its in a perfect spot right now (So far at least). It's not annoyingly flooding you with crap like in PoE 1, but you get a lot more stuff than in 0.1 now. And you almost always get some good loot when you expect it (Like when killing a boss, or opening a rare chest etc.).

Balancing so far seems to be better than last season, and it looks like there are quite some viable options for ascendencies and builds in general. However, deadeye is still heavily favored (Which is to a not-so-small part due to streamers and stuff influencing people to start it though imo). Its still only the third iteration of EA though, they'll get to a more diverse and balanced state for sure once they implemented and tweaked everything.

Can't say a whole lot about endgame so far, but it is pretty much the same as in 0.2 with some added content. So I wouldn't expect huge changes there so far.
They said that endgame rework is on their list for 0.4 though.

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So I'm absolutely in love with PoE 2 again right now. But I also very much enjoyed playing 0.1 though, since I just like the game on a foundamental basis.
I also dislike quite some stuff about PoE 1, and I love PoE 2 for not being like PoE 1 in those regards. So I may have a very different perspective on the game than a lot of the hater on the forums.

I think if you dislike general design concepts like the slower gameplay, the longer and more fleshed-out campaign etc. - Then you'll probably never like PoE 2, no matter what they do to improve the game.
At least unless they change their core design philosophy, which I don't see happening (At least not to that degree). Also, if they'd change the core design, the other half of the playerbase (Me for example) would be mad and/or quit.

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Loot overall feels really good now

The do finally fix the obvious thing like not limiting support gem copies, lower attribute requirement, but it is still the same game as 0.1 to me..

It's good. I ran through the new act and all 3 inteludes on my main in about a day. (had to leave for part of it to go do some stuff)

I missed the big grand finale in the story though.. I don't feel like I was really part of some struggle against evil or whatever. When I finished the last thing possible to do it was just over. I honestly don't remember most of it.

BUT I'm not a lore guy. I realize the expansion was just a couple more map templates, some new bosses (some recycled ones.. ) and some new skills and that's how I played it. (put Xs over all the objectives - that was my storyline)

I still don't have any desire to start a new character. 2 to endgame is enough for me. Heavy minion summoner and screen clearing falling thunder/ice strike monk. I have afk option with the summoner and now that sprinting is in the game I have a zoom/ranged/melee option with the monk. (Never gave him much runspeed but now it doesn't matter)

Why play a ranged deadeye or bow build.. I'll just use the monks projectiled from FT.

Why play other minions? My snipers easily do everything all the way to arbiter.

I'm not interested in uber arbiter but I'm pretty certain my minion build can take him especially after the upgrades to supports they added and the extra 2k ES I somehow managed to get from respec.

All in all it's good for what it is but it does not capture the freedom PoE 1 gave you.

minion build is bricked anyway. Can't kill the boss right before the end game due to very high leeching

I created a huntress and survived the first few levels using basic melee skills. One of the first bosses dropped a nice unique crossbow, and I realized I could destroy everything much more easily with it—even without using any skills. After a few more levels, once I had upgraded my gear and found a decent spear, I went back to melee skills—only to find that everything deleted me in seconds and I could barely deal any damage. At that point, I closed the game, looked up some build stats, and after seeing that half the playerbase was playing Deadeye, I completely lost any remaining desire to waste my time.

I hope that after thousands of hours in PoE1, I'll eventually find enjoyment in PoE2 as well — but right now, I just don't have the motivation.

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NewLanatir#0574 wrote:

I have played 0.1 and 0.2 quite a bit, and always felt the game in general to be a bit too slow for my taste. Especially the flow of progression in early 'seasons' was, for my taste, just to sluggish and i am not the biggest fan of having to try bosses 15 times and grind for hours to be able to get past certain points.
I am probably not a 'casual', but i simply work 40 hours+ a week and have other things that take my time away, so i barely have one, max 2 hours a day for gaming, and i also play other games.

Now, im debating if i should give 0.3 a try, but i did read some concerning info that for a lot of builds the killspeed is extremely slow and that we are back to white mobs being hp sponges.

Dont get me wrong, i love POE in general, i just want to know if it is worth it to sink the little time i have into it.

Honestly I would skip it for now and give it a shot on the official launch. But I think the highest probability right now is that the game becomes much better in 2026.

Reasons to play
Act 4 design is beautifully done
Trying out sprint, infusions, hallow palm
Engaging new content/bosses

Reasons to skip
Campaign is SLOW. REALLY SLOW.
Player power spikes barely exist
Abyss is punishing and can be difficult to skip
Game difficulty is pidgeon holing people into specific builds
Game is lacking serious polish, especially with sprint

I also work 40 hours a week (more or less depends on the need). I am also not casual but I'm relatively new to PoE 2 with my 1 month experience.

It's Sunday morning now since the 0.3 was activated, I have beaten Act 4 and have decent gear by the time I start mapping. All my resistances are capped with 30% on chaos too.

SOLO player on a controller. I don't find the game slow and not having any difficulty surviving. Yes, if we compared this to D4, it's slower for sure but I find it more satisfying.

But the fact I reached early game mapping in less than 48 hours, I think that's fast enough for someone who has no experience in PoE 2. I had one league experience in PoE 1 but I am mostly D4 hardcore player. Folks who have experienced in 0.1, 0.2, and PoE 1 should do far better than me. BUT I also believe just because someone has more experience doesn't also mean they are better. FACT OF LIFE sorry.

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BigBoom9240#8803 wrote:

I also work 40 hours a week (more or less depends on the need). I am also not casual but I'm relatively new to PoE 2 with my 1 month experience.

It's Sunday morning now since the 0.3 was activated, I have beaten Act 4 and have decent gear by the time I start mapping. All my resistances are capped with 30% on chaos too.

SOLO player on a controller. I don't find the game slow and not having any difficulty surviving. Yes, if we compared this to D4, it's slower for sure but I find it more satisfying.

But the fact I reached early game mapping in less than 48 hours, I think that's fast enough for someone who has no experience in PoE 2. I had one league experience in PoE 1 but I am mostly D4 hardcore player. Folks who have experienced in 0.1, 0.2, and PoE 1 should do far better than me. BUT I also believe just because someone has more experience doesn't also mean they are better. FACT OF LIFE sorry.

end game may be not that slow. campaign is

I think you are using Standard league character, not levelling up one in new Abyss league, right?


or have you doced how long you spend in campaign , until reaching mapping?