Path of Exile
by Grinding Gear Games
About
You are an Exile, struggling to survive on the dark continent of Wraeclast, as you fight to earn power that will allow you to exact your revenge against those who wronged you. Created by hardcore gamers, Path of Exile is an online Action RPG set in a dark fantasy world. With a focus on visceral action combat, powerful items and deep character customization, Path of Exile is completely free and will never be pay-to-win.Key FeaturesFreedom. Power. Revenge. Path of Exile is an online Action RPG designed around a strong online item economy and deep character customisation. Path of Exile is set in the dark fantasy world of Wraeclast. Scarred by mysterious catastrophes of the past and inhabited by creatures of nightmare, the very environment challenges exiles who dare explore it. You play as the Duelist, Witch, Ranger, Templar, Marauder, Shadow or the Scion class. From forsaken shores through to the city of Oriath, explore Wraeclast and uncover the ancient secrets waiting for you. Unlimited Character Customization Create and customise hundreds of unique skill combinations from tradable itemised gems and our gigantic Passive Skill Tree. Combine skill gems, support gems and trigger gems to create your own unique combination of power, defence and destruction. All of Path of Exile's character classes share its vast Passive Skill Tree. Starting at one of seven distinct locations dictated by their chosen class, players can focus on the core specialities of their class or travel across the tree to build complex combinations of skills from various disciplines. Scattered across the tree are Keystone passives, Masteries and Jewel Sockets that drastically alter the way a character is played. Armed to Kill Path of Exile is completely designed around items. Our flasks are persistent items that have mods. Our endgame areas can be found as Map items that have mods altering their challenges and rewards. We've gone as far as removing gold as a currency and basing our trade economy around orbs that can randomly reroll the properties of other items. We have carefully constructed our item system for veterans of the best Action RPGs. Explore the Atlas of Worlds The Atlas of Worlds is a series of more than a hundred high-level maps that truly test the limits of your build. As you explore the Atlas, you will eventually unveil its dark secrets and face the most dangerous bosses that Wraeclast has ever seen. In the true Path of Exile way, the Atlas of Worlds has its own Passive Skill Tree. Earn skill points for the Tree by completing maps on the Atlas and create your own unique endgame experience. Deadly Missions In your journey through Wraeclast, you will meet fellow Exiles who seek your help. Capture wild beasts for Einhar, delve into the depths of the Azurite Mine with Niko, explore the secrets of the Temple of Atzoatl with Alva or investigate a mysterious Immortal Syndicate with Jun. Once received, these missions can be completed at any time in the endgame. This optional content in Path of Exile will reward you with valuable currency, powerful tradeable items and new ways of crafting. Customise Your Hideout In your extensive travels throughout the Acts and the Atlas of Worlds, you will discover secret locations swarmed with dangerous monsters. Defeat them, claim the Hideout for yourself and create your own personalised town. Use your Hideout as a quiet place to trade with other Exiles, craft after battle, or expand it and use it as a personalised Guild Hall with hundreds of decorations. Be Ruthless Ruthless is an optional game mode which offers a more challenging way to play Path of Exile. Ruthless players can expect extreme item scarcity, limited crafting and many other changes such as support gems being drop-only. Ruthless is a mode about friction, tension and anticipation. It's much more difficult, but overcoming that difficulty feels highly rewarding. In a world where your items are far below par, every item drop has the potential to be the breakthrough one you need. Fair-To-Play. Never Pay-To-Win. We're committed to creating a fair playing field for all players. All Microtransactions in Path of Exile are purely cosmetic and do not affect gameplay.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q.What is Path of Exile 2?
A.Path of Exile 2 is the sequel to Grinding Gear Games’ dark-action RPG; it launched as a paid Early Access title on December 6, 2024 and is being developed through staged updates before a planned free-to-play full release. The game reworks combat, skills and endgame systems while expanding the campaign and classes.
Q.When is the release date for Path of Exile 2?
A.Path of Exile 2 launched in paid Early Access on December 6, 2024; there is no firm full (1.0) release date yet—developers have said the final free-to-play 1.0 launch is planned for after early access and was expected in 2026 but has been delayed. (Status confirmed as of December 5, 2025.)
Q.What classes are available in Path of Exile 2?
A.Path of Exile 2 features a roster of 12 character classes—two for each Strength/Dexterity/Intelligence attribute pairing—with most available in Early Access and the Druid slated to arrive in a December 12, 2025 update.
Q.Can you recommend some builds for Path of Exile (the original game)?
A.Yes — several reliable, beginner-friendly and meta-friendly Path of Exile builds include Cyclone (Slayer/Juggernaut), Lightning Arrow Deadeye, Toxic Rain/Ballista, Summoner (Zoomancer/SRS Necromancer) and Righteous Fire Inquisitor; follow an up-to-date league-starter guide for the best results.
Q.How does the skill tree work in Path of Exile 2?
A.Path of Exile 2 keeps a sprawling passive tree but reworks its structure for clarity: skill gems now carry their own sockets, the passive tree is more modular (clusters and “attribute highways”), and new weapon-set / dual‑specialization mechanics let you assign passive points that activate when you swap weapons or playstyles.
Q.What are some good builds for Path of Exile 2?
A.Right now the strongest and most beginner-friendly Path of Exile 2 builds include long-range casters like Spark/Archmage, bow-based clears like Lightning Arrow and Ice Shot, sturdy melee Cyclone slayers, and minion/summoner builds (Skeletal/Dark Effigy). Patch changes (Dawn of the Hunt) have moved the meta, so check official notes and current guides before committing to an endgame plan.
Q.Where can I find the patch notes for Path of Exile 2?
A.Official Path of Exile 2 patch notes are published on Grinding Gear Games’ official Path of Exile website—primarily the forum 'Patch Notes' threads and the game's news pages. Community wikis and gaming outlets also mirror and summarise the notes.
Q.What are the latest updates for Path of Exile 2?
A.Path of Exile 2 is actively receiving major content updates: the 0.2.0 “Dawn of the Hunt” update (launched April 4, 2025) added the Huntress and large balance/content changes, and the 0.3.0 “The Third Edict” expansion (launched August 29, 2025) added Act IV, interludes, a new league and asynchronous trading; the team continues to ship hotfixes and balance patches. See official patch/announcement posts for full details.
Q.Where can I find the patch notes for Path of Exile?
A.Official Path of Exile patch notes are published on Grinding Gear Games’ website (News & Patch Notes forum threads); you can also find them on the game’s News page, Steam/SteamDB entries, and community patch-note aggregators like poepatchnotes.com.
Q.Tell me about the Druid class in Path of Exile 2.
A.The Druid in Path of Exile 2 is a shapeshifting, nature-mift hybrid class that mixes elemental magic in human form with feral forms in animal shape, arriving with two Ascendancies (Shaman and Oracle) in the 0.4.0 patch, The Last of the Druids, on December 12, 2025.
Q.When is the Druid class being released in Path of Exile 2?
A.The Druid class for Path of Exile 2 is scheduled to launch with Patch 0.4.0, titled “The Last of the Druids,” on December 12, 2025 (around 11:00 AM PST), with a reveal livestream on December 4 and a free-play weekend at launch. ([pcgamer.com](https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/after-missing-the-last-few-updates-path-of-exile-2s-new-druid-class-is-finally-ready-to-play-in-its-next-update/))
Q.When does the new season for Path of Exile 2 start?
A.The next Path of Exile 2 season — the 0.4.0 update called “The Last of the Druids” — starts on December 12, 2025 at 11:00 AM Pacific Time (11:00 PST) on PC and consoles, per Grinding Gear Games’ announcement.
Q.What's new with the Druid update in Path of Exile 2?
A.Patch 0.4.0, “The Last of the Druids,” went live in December 2025 and adds the Druid playable class (with shapeshifting via new Talismans), two Ascendancies (Shaman and Oracle), big passive-tree expansions, and a raft of support-gem and endgame changes.
Q.Are there any patch notes for Path of Exile 2 version 0.4 yet?
A.Yes — official patch notes for Path of Exile 2 version 0.4.0 (The Last of the Druids) have been published on the official Path of Exile site; the update is slated to go live on December 12, 2025 with the reveal on December 4, 2025.
Q.What is 'The Last of the Druids' in Path of Exile 2?
A.“The Last of the Druids” is Path of Exile 2’s 0.4.0 Early Access expansion/league that adds the long‑teased Druid playable class, new talisman weapons and primal shapeshifting skills, and launched in December 2025 with a developer reveal earlier in the month.
Screenshots
Game Information
- Genre
- Action
- Release Date
- Oct 23, 2013
- Publisher
- Grinding Gear Games
- Last Updated
- December 5, 2025
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