Next month, Path of Exile 2 will finally arrive. The long-awaited sequel will start as a paid early access game until it eventually transitions to the same free-to-play model as the original. Developer Grinding Gear Games has been quiet about the specifics of the launch, but yesterday it confirmed how much early access will cost in a post on X.
“Unlike our usual tiers of core supporter packs, early access packs will begin at $30 USD,” it wrote. Core supporter packs for PoE usually start at $60 and come with a bunch of cosmetic items and shop currency. The studio has cut the price in half for a key to PoE 2 early access, much like it did with early access to its recent PoE 1 expansions. However, we won’t know what else is included in the early access packs until GGG spills all the details on a stream this Thursday.
While PoE 2 will be a separate game, all your cosmetic items and shop currency will carry over from PoE 1. This process proved to be so complex that it was the main reason the developer delayed the early access release from November to December 6. “When you start migrating databases this old and with this much data, you find all sorts of strange demons in there,” game director Jonathan Rogers said in a video announcing the news.
The scope of the early access build is still somewhat of a mystery. We only know it will have three acts in its campaign and an updated version of PoE 1’s endgame maps, which are basically randomized dungeons for high-level players to grind to their heart’s content. Which of the 12 announced classes you can play and what other systems will return is still unclear.
It seems like PoE2 will be a meaty game considering that GGG has been working on it for the last five years. I’ve been catching up on the gameplay videos it’s released to prepare and, at least to me, it looks pretty far along compared to some other games in early access.
Coincidentally, Blizzard has Diablo 4 and its Vessel of Hatred expansion on sale right now for $30 each. If you had asked me a year ago, I would’ve told you Diablo 4—outside of its campaign—felt like an early access game. But a lot has changed in the lead up to the expansion, so if you can only spend your holidays with one action RPG, the choice might be pretty tough.
You can read more about PoE 2 in our November issue of the PC Gamer magazine and then jump into the game on December 6.