So years later, I still think this game has issues. ArchNem is "mostly gone" now, and the game is sorta playable. I feel like there's a wall in this game, where you have to seriously grind for the tiniest bits of progression. I understand, that's fundamental in ARPGs, but in PoE getting upgrades past a certain point is a huge slog. It always has been, but now the bar keeps getting higher to enter most of the end-game content.

Now if you trade for all your items, no problem. I play trade once in a while, but I don't really enjoy it. And playing self-found feels overly punishing.

I can write many pages about this game, having put a ton of time into it. I think the game is in a much better place right now, but every once in a while you run into a left-over from ArchNem and you know it right away. Some random rare mob just won't die, and when you finally down them it drops nothing. That stuff feels bad.

Now my biggest problem in PoE is knowledge. Even after so many hours, and watching content, and learning. I still don't know enough of the items in PoE to make a good end-game build on my own. Second biggest issue is crafting. Not so much knowing how, but just straight up not having enough resources to even attempt it.

I've also started to notice that a lot of mechanics that have stuck around, I'm not a fan of. Things like Heist.... ugh. So terrible. I don't care what rewards you gatekeep there, I will never play that garbage again unless it gets a major overhaul. No one wants to wait for doors to open. NO ONE. I feel very similar with crap like Delve, Incursion, and Sanctum.

Overall the game is good. There's a TON of content, and most of it is optional. You can choose to do as much, or as little of it as you want. I just feel like there's an extreme gear check curve in this game. You'll really feel it going from Yellow tier to Red tier maps. Any progression beyond that is really where the slog comes in.

Lastly, I just want to briefly touch on the cash shop. Yes the game is free to play (f2p), but you will have to eventually buy stash space, and maybe special stash tabs. So it'll cost you probably like $30-40 to get the ones you need, plus maybe a quad tab. For a game with this much content, that's pretty cheap. The cosmetics, are a little over-priced. But they're not pay to win.... well mostly anyways. Things like visual flask effects, so you can easily see when your flask drops off, that's kinda pay2win. Flasks typically have an effect already, it's just harder to see during combat.

So years later, I still think this game has issues. ArchNem is "mostly gone" now, and the game is sorta playable. I feel like there's a wall in this game, where you have to seriously grind for the tiniest bits of progression. I understand, that's fundamental in ARPGs, but in PoE getting upgrades past a certain point is a huge slog. It always has been, but now the bar keeps getting higher to enter most of the end-game content. Now if you trade for all your items, no problem. I play trade once in a while, but I don't really enjoy it. And playing self-found feels overly punishing. I can write many pages about this game, having put a ton of time into it. I think the game is in a much better place right now, but every once in a while you run into a left-over from ArchNem and you know it right away. Some random rare mob just won't die, and when you finally down them it drops nothing. That stuff feels bad. Now my biggest problem in PoE is knowledge. Even after so many hours, and watching content, and learning. I still don't know enough of the items in PoE to make a good end-game build on my own. Second biggest issue is crafting. Not so much knowing how, but just straight up not having enough resources to even attempt it. I've also started to notice that a lot of mechanics that have stuck around, I'm not a fan of. Things like Heist.... ugh. So terrible. I don't care what rewards you gatekeep there, I will never play that garbage again unless it gets a major overhaul. No one wants to wait for doors to open. NO ONE. I feel very similar with crap like Delve, Incursion, and Sanctum. Overall the game is good. There's a TON of content, and most of it is optional. You can choose to do as much, or as little of it as you want. I just feel like there's an extreme gear check curve in this game. You'll really feel it going from Yellow tier to Red tier maps. Any progression beyond that is really where the slog comes in. Lastly, I just want to briefly touch on the cash shop. Yes the game is free to play (f2p), but you will have to eventually buy stash space, and maybe special stash tabs. So it'll cost you probably like $30-40 to get the ones you need, plus maybe a quad tab. For a game with this much content, that's pretty cheap. The cosmetics, are a little over-priced. But they're not pay to win.... well mostly anyways. Things like visual flask effects, so you can easily see when your flask drops off, that's kinda pay2win. Flasks typically have an effect already, it's just harder to see during combat.