Path of Exile 2 News

Grinding Gear Games, Path of Exile 2's developer, announced a 65% chance of a full release in 2025 following the recent 0.2.0 early access update media conference.

This frank statement is surprising. But he also added that the problem is that he is not sure whether it can be completed on time. It is challenging, but not impossible. But if the game cannot be released this year, we will not have to wait too long.

The technical aspects are enough to make people doubt it. Just to complete the remaining main story chapters, five new classes, and the unannounced end-game system, the development team has only eight months left. It is very urgent. And this is only assuming that the scale of the other updates is similar to the current one. What's more, the developer said that some updates will be even larger.

However, the developer has its own development strategy that can ensure efficiency and speed. Maybe they have several teams advancing core modules such as plot, classes, and end-game gameplay in parallel.

The current situation that only 7/12 classes are available in the Early Access version is like a sword of Damocles hanging over the heads of developers. Although Huntress has already appeared, the development progress of the remaining five classes varies greatly. Some have completed the skill framework, while others are still in the concept design stage.

Even more difficult is the class balance issue. For example, when someone uses the recently released Huntress with an excellent build made with enough PoE 2 Currency, the damage caused is amazing. This makes some players worry that there will be an imbalance in class strength and destroy the fairness of the game. However, there is no need to worry too much about this problem for the time being, because the game will be optimized and improved later.

But each class has a unique growth logic, which is like solving six differential equations at the same time. It is not easy to do these problems well at the same time. This also shows that the challenges faced by developers are great. Therefore, I suspect that players may not see the full 12 classes when the full version is released.

Many players also do not trust GGG to launch the full version in 2025. In the voting post on the official forum, less than half of the players believe that GGG can deliver on time. This skepticism is also justified, because a season update of POE was postponed, which led to a drop in the praise rate. Now facing the larger POE 2, players are also very skeptical about this 65% probability.

But GGG's announcement of the 65% probability is not completely groundless. They have a large team developing Act 4, but we can't see it. And there are a lot of things going on behind the scenes. In addition, there are many monsters and other content that are semi-finished products that have been completed but not yet completed, just waiting to be completed and presented to the players. They should speed up this process and bring extra surprises to everyone as soon as possible.

From a macro perspective, the development dilemma of Path of Exile 2 is also a challenge for the entire game industry. When players' demand for game content and quality increases significantly, and new games emerge in an endless stream, the traditional development model is no longer sustainable. Developers need to consider a new and efficient development model. Behind the 65% is the hard work of countless people, and it is also a challenge for developers.

In any case, the race between developers and time will be revealed in December this year, and we will wait and see.

Although the developers have revealed the upcoming Path of Exile 2 patch 0.2.0, very few trailers have been released, which may be a hunger marketing strategy by the developers, causing players to be unclear about the true scale, scope and mechanics of the update.

However, the developer has released some news, such as the new version of Path of Exile 2, called Dawn of the Hunt, which will be released this week. The game adds a lot of new content, such as the new Huntress class and five new Ascendancy.

From the news released, it can be inferred that the focus of the game is on new classes, especially the new Huntress class, and the name Huntress also echoes Dawn of the Hunt.

Many players are also very much looking forward to Huntress class in Dawn of the Hunt, because it is the only basic class released so far, which not only fits the theme, but also whets the appetite of players.

So it seems very reasonable that Huntress class will definitely steal the show in various forms. While Huntress’s spear skill has not been tested yet, Ascendancy will make her extremely powerful, and if she overshadows other characters, the developers may take measures to weaken her.

Why Huntress And Ritualist Will Be OP?

Huntress’s Ritualist Ascendancy in Path of Exile 2 will probably be OP from the start, as the class itself has specific nodes that can benefit any end-game build and become very powerful. Which are:

• Unfurled Finger: +1 Ring Slot
• Mystic Attunement: 25% increased bonuses gained from Equipped Rings and Amulets

The above two nodes can benefit any end-game build and become very powerful. The power of rings in Path of Exile 2 is very powerful, providing players with a lot of item rarity, mana, so that you can get more PoE 2 Currency, so unlocking three ring slots and making all three rings provide 25% of their effects at the same time is hard to miss.

Choosing Ritualist does not mean that players must use the spear skill, and the additional rings are suitable for any scenario.

For example, Path of Exile 2's Ingenuity is a valuable item that plays a very important role in the game's build process. Even compared to pursuit items, Ingenuity is not difficult to obtain. A good pair of rings can make Ingenuity invaluable, not only enhancing three rings, but also making Ritualist very powerful.

How Patch 0.2.0 Update May Affect Ritualist Ascendancy?

There are a few points to note when choosing a Ritualist. First, even if it is not completely changed, there is a chance that Ingenuity will either be nerfed in terms of its effector in terms of drop rates.

This Ascendancy is like getting a gold mine, with a high probability of increasing the effect of the player’s ring by 100% or more. However, the patch notes for Path of Exile 2’s Dawn of the Hunt have not yet been released, so what the real situation is will not be clear until Dawn of the Hunt is online.

The above is a brief introduction to the class including the basic build of the upcoming Path of Exile 2: Dawn of the Hunt. Although this is just the tip of the iceberg, there will definitely be bigger surprises after the entire game is launched.

Since the developer of Path of Exile 2 released the early access version, the popularity has remained high. According to the developer, Path of Exile 2 will have a new class: huntress.

Background Of Huntress

Huntress is a spear-wielding warrior. Born in a very traditional society, she uses her skills to protect her village, but was later expelled from her home. She is a brave and fearless female warrior with a rough life.

Fighting Style Of The Huntress

The huntress is good at using spears to throw and attack prey in close combat. Therefore, whether it is close combat or long-range attack, the huntress is a good choice. It can not only meet the needs of players who like fierce close combat but also meet the pleasure of players to spy on prey from a distance and hunt.

Moreover, the huntress can tame the beasts that fight with them as the companions of the hunter, and the huntress has only one companion in her life. This setting is very interesting and full of warmth.

Huntress’s Key Skills

As a new class, the developer has high hopes for Huntress and is very careful about the setting of the new class. Huntress has 22 skills. After reaching a certain level, Huntress will obtain a powerful spear, summon spirit beasts, etc. The following will introduce several skills that many players focus on.

Whirling Slash

This skill can create a whirlwind that confuses the enemy, and it will explode after leaving the whirlwind. As the number of times this skill is used increases, the explosive power of the whirlwind will be further increased. It can be used in conjunction with the spear to cause unpredictable damage to the enemy. You can use POE 2 Currency to increase your force value.

Parry

While holding down parry, your character will counterattack any attacks from nearby monsters and stun them. In addition, the enemy will suffer additional damage due to subsequent attacks, but it should be noted that some skills are used after blocking, and only when used in the correct way will additional effects be produced.

Blood Loss

This skill is a fatal blow to the enemy. When you leave the battlefield, the monster will bleed continuously. Once the monster loses too much blood, it will damage their health. The huntress can see the amount of blood loss of the monster. Obviously, the more blood loss caused, the more damage the huntress can cause to the monster.

Blood Hunt

Similar to the Blood Loss skill, this skill needs to be used in conjunction with Blood Loss. This skill will cause a bloody explosion after using Blood Loss. The more blood loss, the greater the explosion power.

Lightning Spear Attacks

Reflects lightning between enemies, allowing the huntress to throw the spear on the ground and then explode, but the explosion will cause damage to everything around, so you need to be careful when using this skill.

Fire Spear Attacks

After the explosion, summon flames on the ground full of flames. The flames will absorb them into the whirlwind, so you can use tornadoes in the fire whirlwind, which will increase the damage and harm.

Stormlands

This skill can generate multiple spears flying towards the enemy on the ground. These spears can be detonated on the ground or in the enemy’s body. To some extent, this skill can enhance the power of the spears owned by the female hunter.

The above is the background, skills, and fighting style of the new female hunter in Path of Exile 2: Dawn of the Hunt which will be released on April 4, 2025. huntress is definitely one of the biggest surprises in Path of Exile 2.

Path Of Exile 2 will introduce Druid, one of the 6 new classes that will be introduced after the original 6 classes. This will make the game class build more diverse.

Next, I will introduce some information we know about Druid class.

Overview

Druid is a new class with STR/INT attributes. The addition of Druid can highlight the differences between different versions of the game and make the game become better. And Druid, as his class name suggests, will specialize in Shapeshifting Spells.

From the gameplay we’ve seen so far, Druid matches its STR/INT attributes well, being a mix of melee and spellcasting. On one hand, depending on its starting position, Druid may be more inclined to use things like Armor, Energy Shield for defense. On the other hand, Druid may focus on attacking with a mix of physical, fire, or lightning damage.

Shapeshifting Skills

As we all know, one of the main features of Druid is that it can greatly increase melee damage and survivability by changing into bear form. When the player uses Shapeshifting Spells, they will automatically switch between human and animal forms, but it is not yet confirmed whether there are other animal forms.

• Human form: cast devastating elemental spells, gain control and ranged advantages.
• Bear form: unlock rage-fueled melee skills and improve survivability.

However, this transition takes a certain amount of time, and players can use this to get higher damage. By familiarizing yourself with the order of your skills, you can use regular spells as a human, and then transform into a bear and start pounding the ground.

As before, players can also increase the attack power of Druid by enhancing the strength of the equipment itself. You can obtain POE 2 Exalted Orbs from killed monsters, treasure chests, etc., and use this orb to enhance rare equipment.

Weapons

In addition, this play style is also enhanced by the Dual Specialization system. For example, players can pair a set of equipment with a regular spell used in human form, and prepare a set of equipment for the transformed bear form. Players can make more targeted bonuses based on the advantages of different forms, thereby improving their overall strength.

Druid mainly uses the Staves as a signature weapon, combining its strength and intelligence attributes. It can enhance elemental damage and also help players with melee builds.

• Casting Staves: It can enhance the elemental damage of spells such as Lightning Storm or Volcano.
• Melee Staves: It can enhance the physical damage and scaling of Bear Form skills.

Skill Gems

The following Druid skill gems are currently known:

Lightning Storm

Creates a lightning storm that lasts for a period of time, repeatedly attacking enemies in the area with shocking lightning. The base duration is 10.00 seconds, and it deals continuous Lightning damage to enemies.

Volcano

Creates a volcano that fires projectiles in all directions. Channeling the skill can cause it to fire more projectiles and deal more damage to its first eruption, or it can be cast over a longer period to deal more damage. Slamming near a volcano can cause it to erupt and fire more additional projectiles.

Bear Maul

Creates Rage, causing the player to transform into a bear and lash out with claws in anger, increasing physical attack damage.

Rampage

This is a powerful transformation skill gem that uses the bear’s primal rage to slam the ground as it moves forward, dealing devastating physical damage to enemies.

Furious Slam

Transforms into a bear and slams the surrounding ground with significant force, creating a shockwave that stuns enemies and deals damage to a large area around you.

Ferocious Roar

Players can transform into bears and trigger Warcry skill, applying another Slam to the enemy, causing a second aftershock.

Summoned Wolves

Summoned Wolves in POE 2 are servant companions that provide attack and practical benefits. You can disperse the enemy and cause damage by summoning wolves. Its howl can increase the probability of a critical hit for nearby allies.

Overall, Druid adds to the game experience and fun of POE 2, and we are also looking forward to GGG bringing us new news.