POE2 doesn't have endgame. It has end mini-games.

Path of Exile 2, despite its presentation as a grand, interconnected ARPG, essentially boils down to a collection of loosely connected minigames masquerading as an integrated whole.

Map Running: The core gameplay loop, as mentioned, is essentially a repetitive minigame. You enter a map, kill enemies, collect loot, and repeat. While the maps themselves offer some variety in layout and enemy types, the core loop remains fundamentally unchanged: clear the map, collect loot, move on.

Breach: This "mechanic" is essentially a mini-boss rush. You open a portal, a wave of enemies pours in, and you fight until you either defeat the boss or perish. This repetitive pattern, while challenging, quickly grows stale, lacking the strategic depth and engaging gameplay that a truly compelling boss encounter should offer.

Delirium: Delirium, while initially intriguing, devolves into a chaotic and often frustrating minigame of crowd control and survival. The constant influx of enemies can quickly overwhelm players, making it difficult to effectively navigate the map and engage with the core gameplay.

Expedition: This mechanic introduces a distinct flavor of gameplay, more akin to a light puzzle-solving minigame. Players must navigate a series of rooms, solve simple puzzles, and collect artifacts. While the Expedition mechanic offers a brief respite from the monotony of map running, it feels somewhat isolated from the core game, lacking the thematic depth and integration that would make it truly engaging.

The Atlas: While presented as a complex network of interconnected nodes, the Atlas ultimately functions as a series of interconnected minigames. Each node offers a unique set of challenges and rewards, but these challenges often boil down to variations on the same core gameplay loop: kill enemies, collect loot, repeat.

This "minigame" approach to endgame content, while superficially offering variety, ultimately undermines the overall coherence and narrative of the game. Instead of a seamless and engaging experience, players are left navigating a fragmented collection of loosely connected systems, each with its own unique set of rules and limitations.

This "minigame" structure not only limits player agency but also detracts from the overall immersion and narrative of the game. By fragmenting the gameplay experience into a series of disconnected encounters, Path of Exile 2 fails to create a truly cohesive and engaging endgame experience.

poe 2 endgame is impotent actually right at the moment i write it


something like delve would be an endgame goal

I disagree. As you only stated opinions and described your view i don't actually need to post any arguments do I?

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poe 2 endgame is impotent actually right at the moment i write it


something like delve would be an endgame goal

Its almost like its in early access ;) Endgame is currently cobbled together that people can try endgame builds (you know, the two that exist)

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Its almost like its in early access ;) Endgame is currently cobbled together that people can try endgame builds (you know, the two that exist)

So in your opinion, just because the game is on EA, they can do whatever they want and everything will be fine? The entire end game of the game is bad.

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billzao#1256 wrote:

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Its almost like its in early access ;) Endgame is currently cobbled together that people can try endgame builds (you know, the two that exist)

So in your opinion, just because the game is on EA, they can do whatever they want and everything will be fine? The entire end game of the game is bad.

To answer your question: yes, they can experiment with things in Early Access. That's why the game is in early access; because it's still in development, and know that some of what they've implemented early will need to change before full release.

As for the end game, specifically... yeah, it was a rush job, added just to ensure that PoE2 had an end game at all, and having been mostly modeled on PoE1's end game it has all the problems of PoE1's end game, without having the same wealth of variety that PoE1 has in its end game. The end game is going to need a lot of iteration, and I'll be very surprised if it still has this form when the game goes into full release later this year.

But also... yes, this is Path of Exile. PoE1's end game really is just an accumulation of years of league mechanics. That's kind of their brand. That's the thing that made PoE1 successful, and since PoE2 will also have leagues with mechanics, I think you can count on a lot of those become end game activities. That's how it works. That's how it always works.