Detailed overview of Diablo 3 vs. Path of Exile

I don't consider it so much a game VS the other, but likely as what one game can learn from the other.

Diablo 2 was great, make a character that is passive-wise fun to build and equip, then spam the same main skill until your eyes burn.

In Diablo 3 they tried to turn it into a less passive and more active oriented experience, result was terrible as we all know, but in terms of active skills/gameplay D3 fares better than PoE, focuses at making players use the 6 skills of choice and the specializations inside each skill is a nice touch.

PoE is much more about spam same skill, use other skills to "mimic" passives or as support role, as if the game didn't have enough passive building already.

D3 is more polished and runs better, I'm not talking about artstyle and colors and all these things, since "art" is subjective, people may like whatever they wish.

PoE goes a lot deeper into the terror/horror theme astmosphere, to the point I feel a bit depressed in PoE sometimes, theres nothing "happy" in the entire game, its all about warlike-natives/rejects/opressors and their sorry lives.

Content wise its hard to say... both games repeat same campaign multiple times with mostly no side-quests or anything to break out from monotony. I do think PoE is kinda unbalanced specially towards melee players, most people seem to rather mid-long range builds and avoid those hard bosses from certain maps.

When any of the 2 games take an idea from the other to implement, all players win. For example D3 took the maps system from PoE and made it into rifts, PoE took the treasure goblins from D3 and made the tormented spirits (I really like how they posses rares/uniques). Both games should copy each other more :P

I hated when PoE removed the treasure boxes from areas, but later it introduced the strongboxes wich are another incredibly fun system! I do miss ethereal/runes from Diablo 2, and sets as in D2/D3.

Finally, in my heart D3 will always be specially hated as the game that could have been king of the world, if not for lame devs who thought "screw Diablo series mechanics cause we know better, lets make it a more active game, remove passive char build/theorycraft, and have itemization as boring and grinding as humanly possible for a hack-and-slash pick-loot game, it will be amazing!!" I guess they weren't entirely wrong, some people play that crap until today.

Hoping the new games that come in this format (Lost Ark, Lineage Eternal, even Tree of Savior =P) have done their "homework" and provide intelligent passive building, variety in active gameplay with lots of itemization! PoE/D3 games in a MMO format is something to look for =]

I give up.

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ghamadvar wrote:

I give up.

Don't even bother, some people love misery, just come play some season 4 ;)

Ruins of Sescheron are sick and I love the new mobs and legendaries.

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sephonly wrote:

And by the way, this is the reason that D3 got so much hate initially. From D2 hardcore-gamers. They were expecting a POE, but they got a D3. So we're all here now =)

We were 2-3 years ago. Many of us left path or are leaving. Look how empty the forum got, even the reddit is slow af.

The changes to D3 are great, played it for hours last night.

E: After playing the new content I can say without a doubt D3 is much, much more tuned to D2's feel than PoE ever was or ever will be. I got the same feeling I did when I played D2 all those years ago.

PoE is quality and always will be, but its not the D2 successor, sry fanboys.

Yep, D3 is the successor for those who want to play cookie cutter builds with class specific gear. Yaaaaaaaaay.

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Nizreb915 wrote:

Yep, D3 is the successor for those who want to play cookie cutter builds with class specific gear. Yaaaaaaaaay.

Look at the ladders for this league and then their season, tell me which one has more varied builds..LOL nice try but that argument went out the window with 2.0.

path of life nodes or gtfo. plz.

i grow up playin Diablo..

and when some of my friend introduce me with this, its almost a year, and yet, my build is still glass cannon..

PoE really hard to learn, especially with all the nodes to consider picking that affect to your build..

and i'm still learning, and playing, and grinding, and trading,..
and its suddenly hits me, that maybe, PoE are my game for the rest of my life, idk, too exxaggerating perhaps..

This is a completely useless comparison..

D3 Ties PoE in Loot&Rewards? W h a t ?

To OP

Nice review. Haven't played D3 but the comparison makes me want to primarily because of the commentary about end game progression.

I took a break from POE for about a year when I struggled to progress my fave char in the 90s essentially hitting that brick wall. Returned about a week ago to experience Act 4 and higher level maps to hopefully progress my fave char further, but to date only one 79+ map has dropped (excavation, ugh suicidal for my char). My char has gone from 92 to 94 in about a week...but a couple deaths to instance freezes has frustrated me no end. So I have been unable to breakdown that wall (though am playing a few other chars) so might give D3 a whirl.

Any ideas to compare PoE/D3 with Sacred 2?