December 6th... I'm going to abandon my wife and kids. :cry:
:lol:
Just watched the 1h video. Looks really good so far, but I think I will hold off on it for a bit - still too many other things on my playlist. :D
Wow, that game is visually stunning.
To early access or not to early access, that is the question. Is it nobler to iron out the bugs or better to wait for others to do it.
That's fair. I've bought into the early access for $30. I think it goes free-to-play sometime next spring, maybe? So not too long to wait.
GGG have a decent track record with not releasing massively buggy updates BUT this is the first release of their biggest game ever so I'd expect some turbulence, especially in the first couple weeks. But I've been waiting for this stupid game for years so I'm all in now.
Yeah, I'll probably buy into early access but I don't expect the launch to go that smoothly. Regardless PoE is one of the best deals as far as cost to time spent, so I don't mind throwing a bit of money their way even if the early access ends up being underwhelming.
I should be able for a free early access key, I think? :unsure: :ph34r:
DON'T JUDGE ME!
:weep:
Supposedly early access might be up to a year, which is interesting if they plan to keep it gated for all that time.
The You Tube video says there is a lot already developed for Early Access, but there is a lot that has not yet been developed. Like about 2/3 of the Acts, a number of the classes and ascensions etc. I seems they went this way because they needed more funding to finish the game, and what better way to do that then get people to pay a near full game price for access to an early build.
The upside is that this one will likely get finished, so for fans of the game it's not a bad deal.
Quote from: Syt on November 22, 2024, 10:59:48 AMI should be able for a free early access key, I think? :unsure: :ph34r:
DON'T JUDGE ME!
:weep:
I fear you might not be the only one. :ph34r:
I am glad we will have a good number of Languishites to report back on the state of the game :)
I think I've spent maybe $200-$250 on PoE supporter packs and such over the many years I've played the game. This is for a free-to-play game :lol:
Crazy to see how much has changed since I first played in the early betas of PoE.
I think I'm maybe a bit under $100, but that translates to like $10 a year for a game that was my most played game for most of those years. Bargain.
And I'd never judge people supporting one of my favorite games.
Yeah, definitely. They have a pretty decent monetization scheme where throwing them $30 every few leagues will get you a bunch of graphical mtx and special (and super useful) stash tabs. If you're playing the game for hundreds or even thousands of hours, that feels fair and very much worth it.
So the $30 I'm spending now gets me a beta key but also $30 in points that I was likely going to buy anyway after the game goes full release. Decent deal imo.
I just hope PoE 2 gets Jousis to release more videos with songs.
Quote from: FunkMonk on November 22, 2024, 09:02:17 PMYeah, definitely. They have a pretty decent monetization scheme where throwing them $30 every few leagues will get you a bunch of graphical mtx and special (and super useful) stash tabs. If you're playing the game for hundreds or even thousands of hours, that feels fair and very much worth it.
So the $30 I'm spending now gets me a beta key but also $30 in points that I was likely going to buy anyway after the game goes full release. Decent deal imo.
(https://i.imgur.com/6SHWx6h.jpeg)
Looking at playtime I have in games, PoE is still comfortably in the lead (and you should probably shave off 25-30% off the V3 and CK3 numbers for running observer mode or idling in the background). Considering I've been buying DLC at release for V3, CK3, CK2, HoI4, EU4, Stellaris, I probably spent equal amount of money between EU4, HoI4, V3 and CK3 combined vs PoE and a roughly equal amount of time (maybe? possibly leaning more towards PoE). :P
Looking at these top rows - except BG3 and a few others they all have one major thing in common: you can have a YouTube video or TV show on on the side while playing. :D :blush:
Got the email notification for the early access. :Embarrass:
See you on Wraeclast, exile. :blush:
Quote from: Syt on November 27, 2024, 07:05:18 AMGot the email notification for the early access. :Embarrass:
Awesome. I bought the Supporter pack. Wish it was starting this holiday weekend.
Elon keeps posting about trying PoE 2. This fuckin guy won't stfu about anything.
Holy shit if he actually likes the game and decides on a whim to try to buy GGG :ultra:
This asshole won't stop ruining the things I enjoy
A while back he lauded Elden Ring as a piece of art and posted his character build. It was torn to shreds. Now, you can play FromSoft games any way you like, but there were completely nonsensical things in there (like having two different, very similar shields equipped which adds unnecessary carry weight) and making comments about his reasoning that showed he didn't understand some basic mechanics. Elden Ring survived.
I presume PoE2 will be the same. :P
That's what I hope :lol:
He is supposedly a top ranked Diablo 4 player, but Diablo 4 is a very easy game and it's obvious he just copied a meta build and played nonstop for like a week. :lol:
So they've announced over a million redemptions for EA and rightfully they don't know what will happen with the servers even thought they've tried to scale it up as best they could. I think I'll call it a win if I get past the login screen tomorrow.
I don't think I will try :P
One million viewers on Twitch right now. :XD:
And the servers aren't even up yet.
This download is s l o w
Quote from: crazy canuck on December 06, 2024, 05:04:13 PMThis download is s l o w
Well look who decided to BUY a beta version of a free game :D
First impression, it is much harder than PoE but all in good ways. Reading attacks is so much more important even from the very first boss. I'm not ashamed to say I died many times to the first boss before figuring it out. Skill combos are built in from the ground up unlike PoE. I'm starting out with controller but I might shift to WASD. I think combat is smoother with controller but navigating menus/inventory is a pain and switching between controller and mouse/keyboard is a bit slow.
Quote from: FunkMonk on December 06, 2024, 08:27:33 PMQuote from: crazy canuck on December 06, 2024, 05:04:13 PMThis download is s l o w
Well look who decided to BUY a beta version of a free game :D
:blush:
But man is it with it. I love that it is hard. I have had more fun in the first zones of this game than any ARPG.
Really impressed.
It plays like a much better Ruthless. I love it.
Gone for Necro, and I'm level 12 or so. I think I'll try the new Mind over Matter & Eldritch Battery combo.
Will probably try Infernalist later on.
Bro this game is hard. But it is so so satisfying once you "get" it. A boss was clowning me a few times so I stopped and did something else. Came back a little stronger and a little wiser about playing Warrior and demolished the guy, barely taking any damage.
Only level 10 now but I can see the vision. I do get a dark souls/elden ring vibe, but in a much more complex ARPG progression system.
Quote from: crazy canuck on December 06, 2024, 09:02:08 PMQuote from: FunkMonk on December 06, 2024, 08:27:33 PMQuote from: crazy canuck on December 06, 2024, 05:04:13 PMThis download is s l o w
Well look who decided to BUY a beta version of a free game :D
:blush:
But man is it with it. I love that it is hard. I have had more fun in the first zones of this game than any ARPG.
Really impressed.
I think I stayed in the first zone for like an hour because I was enjoying the combat so much :lol:
This really does feel like the game a lot of people, including me, wish PoE 1 had become.
Quote from: FunkMonk on December 07, 2024, 07:54:35 AMThis really does feel like the game a lot of people, including me, wish PoE 1 had become.
Yes, exactly!
So overall excellent. Some things that niggle, I like the boss fight resets, it makes for a nice challenge. I don't like the instance respawn of mobs on death and that the last respawn point discovered is where you respawn. Respawn point should be the closest point rather than the most recent, and I don't like fighting through a bunch of mobs I already cleared again.
Quote from: frunk on December 07, 2024, 09:37:53 AMSo overall excellent. Some things that niggle, I like the boss fight resets, it makes for a nice challenge. I don't like the instance respawn of mobs on death and that the last respawn point discovered is where you respawn. Respawn point should be the closest point rather than the most recent, and I don't like fighting through a bunch of mobs I already cleared again.
Without context that sounds like describing Dark Souls (though it would be last rested at bonfire, not necessarily most recently discovered one, though it might be same in many cases). :P
Quote from: Syt on December 07, 2024, 09:57:28 AMWithout context that sounds like describing Dark Souls (though it would be last rested at bonfire, not necessarily most recently discovered one, though it might be same in many cases). :P
It does borrow quite a bit from Dark Souls. It is the main complaint of those who enjoy the zoomie character of PoE 1.
Quote from: Syt on December 07, 2024, 09:57:28 AMQuote from: frunk on December 07, 2024, 09:37:53 AMSo overall excellent. Some things that niggle, I like the boss fight resets, it makes for a nice challenge. I don't like the instance respawn of mobs on death and that the last respawn point discovered is where you respawn. Respawn point should be the closest point rather than the most recent, and I don't like fighting through a bunch of mobs I already cleared again.
Without context that sounds like describing Dark Souls (though it would be last rested at bonfire, not necessarily most recently discovered one, though it might be same in many cases). :P
The big difference is that resetting a Souls game means all the monsters are the same. In PoE you randomize the quantity, position and modifiers of all the monsters. That means it's not so much a specific challenge to overcome as a series of random encounters.
Anyway, it looks like the bigger problem of respawn point might have been fixed as I haven't been teleported to a far away checkpoint again.
So it looks like they really don't want you to level up too much if you find some of the content too hard. One is there's a really sharp drop off of EXP, much sharper than PoE. Second, I think you no longer get flask charges from killing monsters (or the number you get are severely reduced) if you are too high level. I decided to try leveling up some before trying to beat the Act 2 boss, and now I get zero or almost zero flask charges on the very long section to get to the boss. I can probably get to the boss if I'm extremely careful, but it's such a long run I think it is now more difficult than when I first tried it a few levels back.
Definitely needs some tuning changes.
What controls are people using?
I first tried the "classic" click to move. It seemed fine, but you basically seem to lose out on the ability to move in one direction, but aim your skills in another.
In WASD, you can move in the 8 cardinal directions, but I noticed I got stuck on the environment a lot, and the keybinds need tweaking for me (e.g. putting skills on the thumb buttons on my mouse). It feels very clunky.
So controller should be ideal, and initially it felt so. However, there seems to be some weird auto-aiming going on. E.g. against the Devourer my melee bro keeps pointing out its tail to me, but no matter what, my attacks all attack the "head" of the Devourer, even when standing next to the tail and moving towards it. <_< (Also, while gameplay is smoother with a controller, inventory management sucks with it :P )
I guess I will go with WASD for now? :unsure:
I'm doing both WASD and Controller at the moment, as when I'm playing on my laptop it doesn't have a good keyboard/mouse setup.
I think WASD is the way to go though. Controller feels better in some situations, especially when playing a long time, but the lack of good hybrid support to handle menus/management makes it clunky.
One of my favorite elements of PoE 2 is how forgiving pausing/stopping/starting is. I can stop on one computer, pick it up on another and most of the time start right where I left off.
It depends on the skills. For melee its definitely old school click to move as I bind the most use attack to that as well. For range, except sorc and witch, its WASD so I can strafe. For Sorc and witch its easier for me to use the click to move because the environment, and movement around it, becomes important for kitting.
I tried out all the classes over the weekend. Witch was the easiest, my firewall summing raging spirits of fire upon case as the easiest. I used the poison archer and the synergy with fire to explode the gas - great fun. Second fav is sorcerer, again fire wall but this time combined with static and orb of storms to get the fire + electrical damage. The SRS is an added benefit to the build.
I found the archer and mercenary classes the most difficult - I am not sure how to survive most of the encounters with these classes.
Warrior was fun most of the time, and I enjoyed the shield block mechanic for most fights, but where there is damage that is not blockable, I struggled - a lot.
I was playing as warrior, and the active blocking does take some getting used to, esp. after years of POE1. :P I didn't quite like the "double roll" attack the game starts you with but Earthquake/Boneshatter combo isn't too bad.
It was a bit of a rough start. Handled the tutorial boss easy enough(ish) but struggled with the controls and learning what is/isn't safe. Lots of muscle memory unlearning (like that my mana flask is on 2, not 5 which was my default in POE1 :P ).
The snow witch was a bit harder, but still managed to take her down on first try. Only the Devourer caused me real issues and my first death, and as mentioned it felt more a struggle with the controls than with the boss, because I knew what to do, but the game kept me targeting the head instead of its tail and eventually I ran out of healing. I do see a lot of good in it so far, though, but I think I will wait a bit more before going back in, and hopefully some of the bumps will have been smoothed out by then. :)
I'm using WASD.
I'm in Act 3 and I've noticed I do a lot less damage on my Witch than my Merc friend. So I've decided to go full defense. I've invested heavily on minion life, revive timer and resists and let the skellies tank the encounters, making space for my buddy to go full DPS.
I've also started a Monk to play when I'm alone. It feels quite dynamic, weaving in and out of melee range. But I'm only level 10.
Strange, my witch is the closest to a POE 1 fast clear type character. Raging spirits from fire wall, plus contagion, plus my revive minions, plus constant raising of zombies from corpses makes everything melt fast.
Once I unlock corpse explosion and work that into the mix this build will run even faster through the content.
I'm still only lvl 21 with my starter, a 2-hander warrior. The idea is to go double 2-hander Titan eventually, or 2-hander with shield.
I've found focusing on defenses is vital when leveling. In poe 1 you could basically ignore defensive nodes until maps. Not so now. So I'm stacking armor, life, resistances, stun threshold, and focusing on my dodge roll timing. So I'm dying much, much less now, and when I do it's because of an obvious mistake I made, like being too greedy and getting surrounded by mobs or trying to lazily trade hits with a boss when they are almost dead.
I'm also exploding packs with the mace strike (basic default) skill linked to brutality and 50% more stun buildup. I'll hit one mob with that, almost always get a prime for heavy stun, and hit it with Boneshatter linked to increase AoE and 40% more damage on low life enemies. That with Herald of Ash deletes packs in two hits 99% of the time.
For bosses I'm using Perfect Strike after they get stunned. So I'm bashing them with whatever, I'll stun them, then unleash Perfect Strike. Usually kills the boss after a few hits with Perfect Strike linked to various damage supports, or faster attacks for QoL.
Game is fun yall
Yeah, with everything except the witch, I took nothing but defensive nodes. Not as necessary with the witch because of all of the minion defence surrounding her, but even still, I raced to mind over matter and have the spirit passive skill that allows me to pick up shield boosts.
Your description of how you played the warrior makes me want to go back and try a two hander rather than relying on my meagre blocking skills :D
So I think you have to double the act to get how defensive minded you need to be compared to PoE. In PoE I'm usually maxing my resists and starting to build my defensive layers around Act 4. In PoE 2 it's tough to max resists by Act 2, but you do need to focus on getting them as high as you can.
Quote from: crazy canuck on December 10, 2024, 07:33:36 AMStrange, my witch is the closest to a POE 1 fast clear type character. Raging spirits from fire wall, plus contagion, plus my revive minions, plus constant raising of zombies from corpses makes everything melt fast.
Once I unlock corpse explosion and work that into the mix this build will run even faster through the content.
The lack of DPS did not become apparent until Act 2 and specially Act 3. Even so I could clear ok, thanks to corpse explosion. But my Merc friend was doing two times the damage easily, and without needing corpses.
My Monk is now in Act 2 and the difference is very, very noticeable. I'm killing bosses in barely 10 seconds. Part of that is surely that I got a very good staff in Act 1, but still.
I see, I have not gotten into act 3 with any of my characters - so what you are saying is I should switch out of my minion build now :D
Ok, I take it all back, I tried out the Monk and the clear speed was much faster, in part because of the greater mobility.
Also took a lightening sorc to 30 and A poison archer to 20ish. levelling an ice sorc now.
The Ice sorc is my favourite by far. casting nova on ice bolts is like doing creeping artillery as I move through a zone. Add in the delayed ice bomb for elites and bosses.
The game doesn't seem so hard anymore as I learn the mechanics and how the skills should be used. Although I think I would still find the warrior a challenge to play.
I've taken two characters to maps (Mercenary and Ranger) and played a few Acts with a Monk and a Sorceress. Overall I love the game and I don't see myself ever going back to PoE1 unless they make significant improvements. PoE2 still needs a lot of work though.
The biggest issue I'm worried about is pacing. They did two things to slow the game down, removed fast movement skills/movement boosts and significantly increased the size of areas. I think one or the other would have been ok, but the combination makes the game drag and a lot more grindy than PoE1. Act 3 is particularly bad in this regard (I'm looking at you Canal), and I'll be very glad when we don't have to repeat acts anymore. Meeting the same monsters a dozen or more times in a row, with it going exactly the same way each time unless there happens to be a Rare involved gets...dull. It's disappointing that they made areas so bland when the Boss design is so great. If the zones were smaller or you could move quicker through the encounters it wouldn't be nearly as bad.
I didn't notice it that much with the first character I got to endgame, but with the second the shiny newness was gone and the fifth time through Act 3 really wore on me.
I think what you're talking about isn't so much a function of the size of the zones as it is a function of repetitiveness. You are playing two classes to Maps that are range, and so they are going to feel. Add to that the fact that they haven't introduced 2/3 of the acts yet, and so there is repetitiveness in seeing the same three acts three times before getting to maps.
I love the pacing of the game and the fact that the zones are large. I came to hate POE 1 because it became a race through the acts to get to maps and then maps themselves became a speed race. I really hope POE2 doesn't devolve into that sort of gameplay.
Quote from: crazy canuck on January 05, 2025, 08:41:17 AMI think what you're talking about isn't so much a function of the size of the zones as it is a function of repetitiveness. You are playing two classes to Maps that are range, and so they are going to feel. Add to that the fact that they haven't introduced 2/3 of the acts yet, and so there is repetitiveness in seeing the same three acts three times before getting to maps.
I love the pacing of the game and the fact that the zones are large. I came to hate POE 1 because it became a race through the acts to get to maps and then maps themselves became a speed race. I really hope POE2 doesn't devolve into that sort of gameplay.
The builds actually played very differently. The Mercenary stuck with the shotgun skills plus freeze, so wants to get up close and personal to maximize damage. The Ranger is a poison range build, so yes wanted to stay distant. I've also spread out my gameplay a fair bit so it wasn't a matter of playing it all within a short period of time.
As I've said I'm ok with them slowing down movement, but the Act 3 zones are too large for that speed and lack of variety. Make the zones smaller but with the same movement and I'm fine.
The game came out what, three weeks ago and you already have two toons in maps. Your idea of spacing out your gameplay is a very different thing from mine. :P
Two quiet holiday weeks spent at home left a lot of time to play.
Quote from: FunkMonk on November 28, 2024, 07:46:51 PMElon keeps posting about trying PoE 2. This fuckin guy won't stfu about anything.
Holy shit if he actually likes the game and decides on a whim to try to buy GGG :ultra:
This asshole won't stop ruining the things I enjoy
He seems to be really good at the game. :P
Dove in to PoE 2 again with the latest update, and...it's ok. It still has the fundamental problems of big areas with slow movement, normal and magic monsters that drop almost nothing and relying on slow to develop combos with mobs that rush too fast until you get the gear/skills to crush them. In fact Act 1 has had some of its areas expanded.
Combined it means most of the game feels very grindy for little reward, and the biggest determinate on how much fun you are having is the movement speed on your boots.
With the new patch out I thought I'd give it another try, trying the mercenary. But I tried all three movement options (WASD, mouse, controller), and not one of them feels "right" for me. But at this point I chalk it up to my skills (or lack thereof). :D
Quote from: Syt on April 05, 2025, 07:05:28 AMWith the new patch out I thought I'd give it another try, trying the mercenary. But I tried all three movement options (WASD, mouse, controller), and not one of them feels "right" for me. But at this point I chalk it up to my skills (or lack thereof). :D
I'm almost entirely WASD now (sometimes controller when I'm on my laptop). I'm still waiting for better hybrid support for controller/keyboard.
From the What We're Working On post.
QuoteLarge Area Sizes
Many players are reporting that areas feel like they are too large. Normally when this is the case, the main reason is due to other concerns such as monster life or player damage being incorrect, or just a lack of entertaining content in the area. However, we are checking to see if there are any outliers that players are spending too long in to see if any changes to area size need to happen.
In the meantime, we did notice that there are some areas that don't have sufficient checkpoints, so we are doing a pass of adding some more of these.
No, the problem is huge ass areas with repetitive enemies and slow movement speed. The content is entertaining, but not when I have to repeat a hundred times plus wander and backtrack around a bunch in so many areas.
You can nerf movement speed compared to PoE 1, but then you need to make the areas smaller not increase them.
I really hope they don't bow to the pressure to make zone smaller. If people want to do speed runs, they can go back to POE 1.
My main issue with the game is it becomes too easy and the fun of the early part of the game gets lost. But I guess they have to do that to keep the audience that wants an easy game happy.
I tried to huntress over the weekend and the police style melee version is what I hoped the monk would be.
Quote from: crazy canuck on April 07, 2025, 10:10:36 AMI really hope they don't bow to the pressure to make zone smaller. If people want to do speed runs, they can go back to POE 1.
I'm not talking speed running here, I'm talking not spending 30 minutes in an area because I can't find the way to the next one because it's so damn big.
Quote from: frunk on April 07, 2025, 10:19:05 AMQuote from: crazy canuck on April 07, 2025, 10:10:36 AMI really hope they don't bow to the pressure to make zone smaller. If people want to do speed runs, they can go back to POE 1.
I'm not talking speed running here, I'm talking not spending 30 minutes in an area because I can't find the way to the next one because it's so damn big.
It takes me less than that time to clear a hole opening area, so I'm not sure what you're doing wrong.
I agree with Frunk. Maps are too big. Especially in Act 3.
I like to explore the whole map, though.
I'm going for a Smith of Kitava build. Plan is simple so far: get elemental resists to 85% and wield a two-hander plus shield.