Recent reviews by Myrilath

As of writing this I have over 3.5k hours in this game so it should be clear that I like it, a lot. Path of Exile is a grimdark ARPG, and a complex one at that. You can play thousands of hours and still not complete all the content or have tried all the possible build options.n It is dark, gritty and punishing at end game. Fans of the Diablo franchise, who are looking for a lot more complexity and flexibility should look into this game.

There are several character archetypes to choose from when starting out, this will influence a few things:
- Where you start on the passive skill tree (which is huge and customisable to some degree)
- Your ascendancy class options (think class specialisations)
- What skills are offered as quest rewards.

There is an additional class which can be unlocked partway through the main storyline which will then be available for use when creating new characters.

Skills are determined by socketing gems into items (similar to the socketing of materia in FFVII) with support gems allowing you to modify how skills work. This allows for massive customisation of powers and play style. E.g. you have a single projectile fireball spell, link it to a multiple projectile support gem and now you have several fireballs. Want it to burn for more, there is a gem for that, want the burning to spread to nearby monsters, you can do that too.

When you combine the random statistics and abilities on items, the massive skill tree, the customisation options for your skills, you have astronomic levels of flexibility in your build.

That said this is a massive game, which can be pretty grindy at times in end game, it is somewhere between an MMO and Massively Single Player. You can party up and get better XP and rewards, but it also limits your attempts at end game maps and significantly increases monster HP the more people in party (up to 6).

There is a 'base game' called standard which can be played constantly and is always around, however there are also leagues. Leagues last a few months at max and introduce a new mechanic or themed event, complete with challenges and rewards. Once a league ends, your characters will be migrated to standard and if the league proved popular and non-gamebreaking it will generally get worked into standard as a core mechanic. That said most people only play leagues.

There are a lot of scammers, and this is definitely a game for more mature audiences. Only the bare minimum is done to control language and scamming - this is largely because thematically, everything in the game is trying to screw you over somehow, and other players trying to do the same fits with that. Note, most of the gameplay is instanced to you or your party, and PVP is by request only, so you cannot be ganked or have your general gameplay interfered with.

All-in-all I strongly recommend PoE to anyone even remotely interested in the genre, but be aware that like EVE, it has a learning curve.

If you enjoyed Space Engineers or Empyrion - Galactic Survival then you will likely enjoy Planet Nomads too. The play style and feel of the game is very much like Empyrion but seems a little more polished in its interface. The questline\story line feels a lot like Subnautica, with the story unfolding through a series of data pads. There are also aspects which remind me of No Mans Sky, if you spent a lot of time running around the same planet hunting alien ruins.

Like Space Engineers and Empyrion there are some issues when placing walls, etc. The snap function is very clunky and sometimes you will need to place a few blocks to assist if being able to snap to the spot you want.

Apart from that it is a very good game with an overall good build system with some nice automation mechanics. The conveyor pipes are easy to use and work really well. On normal survival the thirst\rest\hunger mechanic doesn't seem punishing and it is quick to get yourself to a survivable state.

My laptop is old and clunky and this runs fine.

If you liked Dwarf Fortress or Prison Architect this is probably for you. Colony Management at its best.

If you enjoy the sandbox of minecraft but want a bit more of a storyline structure imposed - try Terraria. Has a nice retro feel yet is extremely playable.

If you liked the depth of Morrowind, the stories, the characters and loved the quality of Oblivion's graphics then you should get Skyrim. It takes the quality of Oblivion and blends it with the character and depth of Morrowind. Well worth the buy.
UPDATE: After all this time the game has been out, the modding community is still strong, the game is still amazing and there re still things to find.