After the incredible success of Diablo 2 back in the day, it was clear enough that there was a huge opportunity for developers to make ARPGs that would be played by generations or at least have a moment of glory. Players wanted to have more games like Diablo 2, as replayability would eventually not be an option anymore after trying every little thing the legendary title had to offer, and so came a series of other ARPGs that drew inspiration from Blizzard's success. When Diablo 3 came out, many players were disappointed because it took a very long time to be released and it couldn't possibly live up to the hype, which made for the perfect storm that brought attention to a small company called Grinding Gear Games and its ARPG in the making, Path of Exile.
Path of Exile launched in 2013 on October 23rd, and today is a special date due to the eighth anniversary of the game and the launch of its newest expansion and League - Scourge. During a preview event for Path of Exile: Scourge, Game Rant got a one-to-one interview with Chris Wilson, the lead developer of the game and one of the founders of GGG all those years ago. Wilson spoke about what's coming with today's launch, while also responding to matters that have been hot topics within the community for a while now, including the clear speed meta and the timers that most Leagues come with.
Path of Exile's Clear Speed Meta and The Identity of ARPGs
The Scourge League is one of many expansions in Path of Exile to come with a built-in timer to tackle its content, and the mechanics hinge on the fact that it takes players a bunch of kills to access the Scourge areas. Once inside, the timer will kick in, and this naturally promotes a playstyle that's oriented towards moving through areas quickly while also wiping out as many monsters as possible within a short span of time. This is what calls for the clear speed meta, where players tend to optimize their builds around damage, mobility, and survivability in order to have the most effectiveness in gameplay.
The clear speed meta is not something that's exclusive to Path of Exile, of course, and Wilson made a very good point about what the nature of ARPGs is and what it means to build one where players are inherently prompted to get the most out of their effort. ARPGs as a whole have always fostered a certain type of playstyle that revolves around building the strongest character possible to get even stronger by farming for loot, exponentially reducing the amount of time that's required to do that, thus maximizing the results. That's why Wilson thinks that it's hard for GGG to balance things in a way that alleviates that and doesn't feel artificial in a way, as the developer does not want to limit the options that players have and decide for them when it comes to how the game should be played.
Thus, while GGG has been thinking about changing things in a way that removed the timers and the urge for players to obliterate every single enemy in a matter of seconds, it is also a challenge from a game development and balance standpoint. Wilson stated that throughout Scourge's development cycle, the idea of replacing the timer with something else was always something the team would reprise. However, due to internal struggles and the fact that the game is already oriented towards clear speed, it was eventually put aside. As such, even if Path of Exile's new League might seem to promote that same clear speed meta that's been discussed both internally and with the community for years now, it is also a derivative factor that is tied to the identity of the game and ARPGs in general.
How Clear Speed and Party Play Come Together in Path of Exile: Scourge
Making a character in Path of Exile (or any other game about loot) that doesn't tackle the content efficiently can often ruin the experience, especially when comparing it to those of friends or influential players. As such, this spot is a delicate one to balance in GGG's ARPG. According to Wilson, there is an implicit incentive where killing enemies twice as fast grants twice the rewards, and that is hard to change when loot is such a big aspect of the game. With this in mind, figuring out how to handle party play in Path of Exile is also a challenge.
Prior to Scourge, players would rely on the extremely powerful Aura skills that could be stacked and provide the whole party with exceptional boosts. This is being nerfed with Scourge's launch, and GGG seized the opportunity to make new party skills to compensate: Links. These are targeted buffs that one player can cast on friendly targets, and while very potent on their own, if the target of the Link skill dies, so does the original caster.
But playing together also poses the question of how much of an impact each character's individual clear speed can have on the experience of party play, and that does also apply to Link skills. However, Wilson is adamant that party play should never be more incentivized than solo play as a rule of thumb, as it would dab into social issues and more difficult balancing choices. That's why Link skills provide a huge bonus, and so does playing the game as a group, but that doesn't meant that it's always optimal. Ultimately, Path of Exile Scourge will be a way for GGG to mend some issues that arose with Expedition, while also creating an exciting new environment for everyone to enjoy, timers or not.
Path of Exile: Scourge is available on PC now, and releases on consoles October 27.