Mind Blown

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Elynole wrote:
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iamstryker wrote:
I am curious as to how you feel about Diablo 3 after playing Path of Exile. Let me know after you have played a good amount of content in POE and then went back and played more D3.


I've done this. Played D3, POE, and TL2 all at end-game. Each has their pros and cons but overall I feel that POE has the longevity that most are seeking based on their experiences with D2


PoE easily has the longevity. TL2 is a finished product now, unless you count fan made mods or *maybe* an expansion. D3 is currently finished other than small updates in little patches (the new Uniques, Paragon levels etc) and of course the obvious D3 expansion down the road.

Where as PoE is just now about to get Act 3 out the door, and PvP Arena out the door. With the Turbo League, Cut Throat League and Ironman League yet to come, PLUS Act 4 and beyond? Yea we've barely scratched the surface of PoE content. We just have to wait.
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Pivu wrote:
League of Legends was the first game that changed quality of F2P games. I was playing it for 2 years and never payed a cent. Now it's the most popular game in the world with highest amount of active players. Much more than WoW, much more than anything.

Path of Exile is imo the second F2P game in history of gaming that will achieve the same status as LoL.


Yeah when I first started playing LoL back when Riot took over from GOA I was amazed by the idea behind the purchasing system the game has and I love to see that other developers are beginning to use similar financing concepts.

There have been many circumstances which helped League Of Legends get as big as it is today and PoE can't benefit from:


1.) The MOBA-genre was new to the majority of gamers.

The only rivaling title back in 2010 was Heroes Of Newerth (HoN) which was mostly a direct clone of DotA mechanic-wise.


2.) League Of Legends was accessable (well, at least for MOBA standards).

Unlike HoN League Of Legends did not copy the mechanics of the orginal DotA one by one, but made several changes to coremechanics of the game, namely the shortened game-length (~30 min), a shift from attribute-based champions to AP/AD, excluding denying, weaker abilities and simplified maps which all led to a "noob-friendly" experience as the game is relatively easy to learn but still hard to master.
Being a PvP game and having relatively short rounds also is what made Shooters popular - besides flashy graphics.

Also it felt rewarding to actually play the game because you earn influence points and experience points with each game, thus enhancing your champion pool, unlocking new talents and so on. This is something that should not be underestimated because it gives casual gamers a good reason to keep on playing for a longer time and not quit after a losing streak. Both DotA and HoN (and Starcraft as an RTS example) did not have this system which limited the playerbase in the long run, especially in the non-competitive scene).


3.) League Of Legends was F2P:

While the idea of F2P games was not a new one back in 2010, it still was a system mostly unused by western-oriented developers and with HoN having an initial cost of 30$ it was obvious which game would become more interesting for players new to the genre.
Also the implementation of the cash-shop (giving only visual improvements and no advantages in the game) was almost unique for non-browserbased games back then.


4.) Internet connectivity improved and streaming became popular:

With an increased interest in onlinegames due to better internet-connections the market for competitive games became much bigger and LoL was one of the first game to use it's chances.
Streaming also factored into this as it allowed people to directly watch their favorite porfessional player playing or even watch entire tournaments (where they can cheer for their favorite team/player much like in real sports), thus adding to the process of people being emerged in / getting attached to the game and the community.



Of course these aspects are still true as of today and I left some stuff out, like Riot pushing the competitive scene.

If you take a look at PoE, as good as the game is it probably won't be as succesful as LoL (no game without PvP-focus will). The Action RPG-market is highly competitive, ARPGs are grinding games which require a bigger investment in time if you want to feel competitive and PoE is one of the less accessable games out there.
Therefore the pool of players the game is targeted at is a much smaller one, which is not necessarily a bad thing.
Last edited by Victo on Oct 29, 2012, 6:42:08 PM
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Tindraa wrote:
I know what you mean. I actually think being F2P hurts the brand. F2P for the most part has a perception of being either "junk" or of "I'll be extorted later once I become addicted".

For that reason, I've always felt this is a game that would be well worth a $5/month subscription (yes, I said it!!!). I guess that is why I also decided to pay the Gold Level. In my mind, I'm paying the $50 software price plus 20-40 months of server subscription time, but I also get some goodies (T-Shirt!!!!) and in game cosmetic spending.

I'm actually looking forward to spending my points on in game cosmetic/storage goodies.


I definitely plan on supporting PoE via purchases, and telling my friends about it. I think ethical F2P can change the face of F2P. I got the pack I could afford at the time, but would love to get up to Gold level before the closed beta is over.

My wife and I have a new baby due any day now, so cash and game time are low. Regardless, when I do have time to game PoE will be what I'm playing from now on. D3 is done for.
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Maverickroll wrote:
PoE easily has the longevity. TL2 is a finished product now, unless you count fan made mods or *maybe* an expansion. D3 is currently finished other than small updates in little patches (the new Uniques, Paragon levels etc) and of course the obvious D3 expansion down the road.

Where as PoE is just now about to get Act 3 out the door, and PvP Arena out the door. With the Turbo League, Cut Throat League and Ironman League yet to come, PLUS Act 4 and beyond? Yea we've barely scratched the surface of PoE content. We just have to wait.


D3 feels like a chore. I also somewhat forced myself to play it simply because I wasted $60 on it and it was too late for a refund. When I reluctantly installed PoE I was immediately engrossed in the world. When I saw the FF X style skill tree my jaw hit the floor. When I saw the amazing gem system which reminds me of the materia system in FF7 I knew I was dealing with a very special game. PoE is going to be the definitive ARPG for me going forward. I can’t say Blizzard is in trouble because they’re too huge, but they just lost me to this indie team for sure.
Last edited by Binarygodmonkey on Nov 6, 2012, 3:05:47 PM

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