Generalized Feedback
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Overview:
I've been Alpha and Beta testing games since I was in my early teens. I have also been lucky enough to [GM] for Aeria Entertainment (Last Chaos Online) and Acclaim (Dekaron / 2Moons Online) as well as participate in an honorary development team for Electronic Arts Los Angeles (Medal of Honor: Warfighter). My 'resume' if you will expands many different games, publishers, and companies but I have to confess. GGG and their community may be my all-time favorite. I did alot of research before diving into the game this morning. I read multiple threads on mechanics and what to expect as well as created a few of my own on potential builds and mechanic caps. Needless to say I didnt enter the game 'blind' so to speak, but I did have some questions here an there. Most games you go into a lobby, ask a question, and you get flamed to no end whereas here on Path of Exile you get direct responses, and sometimes even multiple responses. It makes playing the game a whole hell of a lot easier when you dont feel like you have to be by yourself. It also makes it alot more entertaining. Likes: I feel as though this is the game that Diablo III should have and could have been. Path of Exile has the dark, eerie dungeons and cryptic storytelling that you would expect from Blizzard but was absent from their latest iteration of the Diablo franchise. In Diablo III you knew how the story was going to end before the first Act was even finished, whereas when I was playing Path of Exile, everytime I thought the Act was coming to an end there was fresh, new content to play. Even the smaller portions of the game like Rocky Cliffs and The Coves that were used to link two bigger areas together were vast, and beautifully put together. The shadows, my God the shadows. Its amazing how something so simple can make the immersion of a dungeon so much better. While you swing your arms using Dual Strike the shadows of your arms project across the dungeon walls. Sometimes it tricks you thinking that there are enemies coming for you when there really isnt. It's a simple, yet great addition to the game. Who can forget, free to play, forever! Dislikes: I cant help but feel that the beginning of the game can be a little difficult pending you dont have skill gems that you want to work with. I just finished Act 1 (I believe.) and the most dominate skill ive been using the whole time was Dual Strike. I have a plethora of skill gems, but they dont fit the build I am trying to achieve. Perhaps its my beginners knowledge, or lack of luck in drops but it can be quite difficult fighting a boss or rare monster with a single skill. I found myself kiting most of them. I have some minor griefs about some of the visual aesthetics. Perhaps its because the game is in Beta stage and hasnt gone through a full polish, but I cant help but ask myself why are entrances and exits of zones white? I feel as though they could use either a colored mist or a 'portal' effect that signifies them as the entrance or exit of the zone. In addition to this, Waypoints feel the same way. When we use a Waypoint, its more or less like 'Poof, im here lets go.' -- theres really no visualization of arriving or leaving. Perhaps a sprite that shows motion or travel between the Waypoint and town is in order? Just a thought. Conclusion: I couldnt stop playing the game since I started this morning. I played to the completion of Act 1 and cant wait to continue tomorrow. The game is looking absolutely phenomenal and you can tell how much time, effort and love GGG has put into the game. I will also be upgrading to Supporter before the end of the CBT period because I feel as though this is a game and a company I can support. |
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Very good feedback.
If you can tell us what build you are trying to achieve, then we can tell you what skill gems could best suite you. Dual strike is a powerful spell that I use on my claw shadow, so it may well be the best attack skill for you. I like the idea of a 'portal' kind of effect, or a walking animation. But as you said, this is beta, and the devs are probably working to polish act three before luxuries are to be released. By the way, end of act 1 is killing merveil, the siren. End of act 2 is killing Vaal. "Minions of your minions are your minion's minions, not your minions." - Mark
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" Currently, there just aren't too many skill gems in Act I that fit a specific build. Ranged and multi-element casters get the largest set of skills (three or four), specific-weapon users the fewest (often one or two). There's a couple reasons: -Some skills have higher required levels. Granting these early on is kind of pointless :P -There aren't any more skills in the first place. GGG's constantly working on implementing more ways to kill monsters though, which should help alleviate this little by little -Part of the skill variation comes from customisation; Support gems to be exact, which also are higher level. You get your first at the end of Act I. Especially in the second difficulty, they're a much larger part of the quest reward pool. The current lack of varying skills in the first difficulty makes PoE a rather slow starter though. Saying 'it gets better later' might not be the most positive remark, but it's true. Glad to hear you're enjoying it, too! :) | |
" Once you have a bit more first hand knowledge of how things progress and what skills you favour, it becomes easier. PoE definitely DOES have a steep learning curve compared to a lot of modern games. But I love that old school style of cruelty. " This has been pointed out and will likely be polished up in the future ( probably sometime in OB ). Because it is a fairly minor thing, it takes a bit of a back seat getting OB ready and Act 3 all set. "I would have listened... I would have understood!" - Scion
Have you removed Asus ROG/GameFirst yet? |
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