Trials of Chaos are the Single Most Annoying thing in Gaming

It's honestly some of the easiest content in the game in comparison to other end game things lol.

Totally agree with the OP

I HATE ultimatum and Sanctum BOTH!

"

Kraythax#2592 wrote:

I dont know a SINGLE person that liked Ultimatum in POE1. Why you made it essential here is incomprehensible.

Wait until you learn that for years, people where asking GGG to bring back Ultimatum and for them to make it part of the core game (literally one of the most common question on the Q&A segments of new announcments). Than they finally did and people where too unreasonably hyped for it just for Ultimatum to fall out of peoples favours again very quickly.

But yeah I don't love it in PoE2 either, however right now you can do 3/4 asdendancies as Trials of Sekhema. I guess only the 2nd (Act3) one is mandatorily the chaos trial? Even than, no offense but if you can't beat 3 floors and a boss with some ass mods than your build absolutely sucks, or you do as a player.

The 10 floor Trials are a different thing of course but no one forces you to play those.

Both trials are garbage as mandatory progress mechanics. They are fine for loot farming for whoever like it, but it shouldn't be the only way to progress your ascendancy.

"

Slart1bartfast#0332 wrote:

I mean, both trials are a master class in everything to avoid in game design.

I genuinely laughed at this and i agree 100%, trials are the epitome of anti-fun

Let us stack shrines and blast through enemies with 500% more hp or something idk

Ultimatum in PoE1 is enjoyable in the endgame on a well-built character that can skip at least 50% of the mechs. CI alone would allow you to skip 3-4 stages by picking chaos damage options for no loss; you are largely stationary and casting instead of dragging a stone through massive aoes, etc.

PoE2 throws it at you way too early, and the downsides generally cannot be immuned or skipped.

At least in PoE2 sanctum I can build honour resistance and effectively ignore the extra lifebar. It basically turns it into Ultimatum but better, because you get to have some buffs too instead of just debuffs.

I still want nothing to do with both mechanics after I got my ascendancy.

"

Danny90x#3250 wrote:

It's honestly some of the easiest content in the game in comparison to other end game things lol.

This is true, but completing the Trials are mandatory and everything else is not. Without having those 8 skill points it's very hard to progress.

It's just a very tedious progress and they know this. They could easily remove it or add some lives like they have added to everything else. Look what they did to Delirium we can literally respawn forever making it utterly pointless. Anyways.. some decisions are just..

After the first Sekhemas ascendancy (that is barely bearable) I don't bother with them until I way overlevel and faceroll them and then I never do them again.

The main issue I see with both trials is that both are designed such that one bad RNG roll can ruin all your previous time and effort.

That is bad design.

In both, when the levels/rooms roll something bad, there's no process of "okay how can I counter this". Nothing of that sort.

What's worse, is that both trials ultimately are a choice of bad outcomes. We are not choosing which good outcome we want, but choosing which bad outcomes we are willing to suffer.

This is the same issue as endgame mapping and and the toxic and cancerous design philosophy of POE2: nothing can come without a downside.

Everything has to have downsides in this game, and Chaos takes it to the extreme, where there are ONLY downsides.

You know it's bad design when the common sentiment towards that content is "why?".

I can beat Sekhima. Though I hate the mechanic with honor. I can beat ultimatum for ascension once. That doesn't change the fact that it is annoying and irritating and not good gaming. These two systems were extremely unpopular in POE1 and they were made required here in POE2. Incomprehensible.

I hope it all trials get redone at some point. Each trial should be a test of build/skill at various points in the game vs trials of attrition. Too much of the game is negative modifiers design wise - skills, supports, trials, maps (even blue low maps). I wouldn't be opposed if there was a farming item goal for each part for those who enjoy replaying them such as catalysts, jewels, etc. Ascendancy seems a bit steep in effort to reach even token currency for entry doesn't drop much at all either (maybe RNG - weird to only have 3 tokens for my 3rd ascendancy approaching level 80). Hopefully they can cook all of them when the 4th act ascendancy comes out.