Serious question: Why does Act 1 have to be grueling and miserable?

I honestly have no idea how a new player goes through the base game. Just on the basic front of the first skill, you get on the beach. None of the characters should be getting a strike skill. Even some of the "AOE" skills need to be changed out for better starting skills.

Some of the level 12 skills could be brought down to starter skills.

To start the Ranger with a flame arrow is just silly at this point. I don't know I think it's an issue they could change easily and make it much better for new players.

I am not even against giving players some 10% movement skill boots as a quest reward at the start.

With the late game getting much harder (for some) and drawn out I don't think it would be a bad thing.

it's not thaat freaking bad, stop

I usually enjoy the first two acts most.
Constant upgrades to your gear and for non-casters the physical damage recipe works wonders, it they can't get the damage elsewhere.

League content can be hard when you're not fully geared (i.e. don't have two rings yet, no amulet and perhaps, as a bow char, no quiver).
Once you have something (pretty much anything) in all slots, it gets a lot easier and if you luck out and find something actually GOOD for your level bracket, it's a piece of cake.
The only thing you won't get so easily is the insane AoE. As far as damage is concerned, however, most stuff doesn't stand a chance against you.

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Aynix wrote:

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Gopstop22 wrote:

wait really? i thought they were so excited to rework all acts and i was looking forward to it aswell did they really get such backleash from act 1 rework? are people really such cry babies?

Not everyoen who plays PoE has years of experience. You need to think about new people who just started the game and know literally nothing.
You cant greet those people with things like that or they will leave same day they started and never come back.

this game have never been new player friendly and was never suppose to be and they shouldnt focus on making the game new player friendly if they will it will turn into another diablo 3

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Gopstop22 wrote:

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Aynix wrote:

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Gopstop22 wrote:

wait really? i thought they were so excited to rework all acts and i was looking forward to it aswell did they really get such backleash from act 1 rework? are people really such cry babies?

Not everyoen who plays PoE has years of experience. You need to think about new people who just started the game and know literally nothing.
You cant greet those people with things like that or they will leave same day they started and never come back.

this game have never been new player friendly and was never suppose to be and they shouldnt focus on making the game new player friendly if they will it will turn into another diablo 3

There is diffrence between casual friendly and new player friendly.
If you dont make ur game new player friendly it will DIE. No human will play same thing for eternity, so you need steady income of new players.

Act 1 literally takes less than 20 minutes. How is that Grueling?

I thought that the +sockets mod on strongboxes was a way around the max sockets rule as well. I seem to recall getting an ilvl like 25 base with 6 sockets from a strongbox and thinking it would be a good thing to roll for low level PVP a long time ago.

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Aynix wrote:

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Gopstop22 wrote:

wait really? i thought they were so excited to rework all acts and i was looking forward to it aswell did they really get such backleash from act 1 rework? are people really such cry babies?

Not everyoen who plays PoE has years of experience. You need to think about new people who just started the game and know literally nothing.
You cant greet those people with things like that or they will leave same day they started and never come back.

Under normal circumstances I'd agree, but.....

For starters, if you've never played a game, or an ARPG before this game is not for you; no matter how much you wish it to be (still can pull through if you have enough will and passion). In this case, you should start with something easier first; like learn the basics of gaming. This is not POE's problem, it's a player problem.
And now the real issue I have with the "new player" experience. I've seen countless people try their hand at POE; all self proclaimed new players to the game or the genre. 99% of them always complained that they do not understand anything (not even the basic press 1 to heal). Back when POE didn't have the tutorial tips (which I will agree are pretty basic, but I still think they tell you enough to at least vaguely understand where you stand) I sometimes could sympathize with them; I know how frustrating it is to figure some things on your own. At one point the tutorial tips were added, and guess what.....no new player I've seen try the game has ever read them, none. gem drops on ground: first question: what do I do with this? Asks for 1 minute straight while audibly getting frustrated....meanwhile the tutorial pop up in the corner: "am I a joke to you?"

TL;DR: yes the game can be intimidating to new players, sadly most of the new player put no effort in trying to play the game. It's as if they were all conditioned to just follow quest markers, and the game to play itself. A symptom of a sick gaming industry.

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mariox1011 wrote:

Act 1 literally takes less than 20 minutes. How is that Grueling?

Act 1 isn't bad if you have leveling uniques like Wanderlust, Goldrim, Tabula, and something to help your damage like lifesprigs, but trying it out on a fresh witch SSF fresh start right now is rough. I tried 3 different times with Stormblast Mines, Freezing Pulse, and Blight, but all 3 just feel terrible.

Sure for the top 5% who if you are a speed runner and very good at the game who always skips everything and can still do act 1 SSF fresh in 20 minutes, then the game isn't a problem for you. I'm referring to everyone else. People who kill a little too much, ppl who stop for all blue packs, and ppl who do sidequests. Maybe it's from doing the campaign 250x, but I would prefer to have the game start easy and get progressively harder as more options for defense and damage become available.

Act 1 us is one of the few I actually enjoy. I think the pacing is decent and challenge about right. There's plenty of other acts that feel more exhausting to complete with back tracking and larger "wrong way simulator" layouts.