Path of Exile has become an industry leader and a true cornerstone of ARPGs over the past 14 years and anyone that has any interest in ARPGs should play it to at least get a sense of what a true build makers paradise is like. Don't expect a simple game though. PoE is anything but simple, even if you end up playing a 'simple' build, which is part of what makes it great.
I've still got my beta acceptance letter from 2012 in my account email, and I still enjoy the game today even after playing it for years on the standalone launcher, PS4, and now here. The number of times I've gone through Act1 may be bordering on some sort of condition. I remember someone watching me play the early beta and how they reacted to seeing the passive tree, it was instant nope. I love the flexibility it allows, but I love making my own builds, which this game is perfect for. If you typically need a build guide, this game may be a little much for you, try 2 first as it's generally a lot simpler to wrap your head around.
So yes, Path of Exile 2 exists, and I like that game a lot too. I'd even go so far as to say that PoE2 may be a better overall game, but there is something truly special about the original that the second still lacks. Hearing the *ting* of a special drop still excites me. Finding the right slots and links on an incredible item still gives a thrill. Figuring out how to slot your gems so you become so powerful you're wiping the whole screen with a single skill is what it's all about and it's still as gloriously confusing to try and figure out as ever and ultimately satisfying in a way that most games never hit when it all works.
And then there is the speed, Zooming around a map in PoE once you got your run speed up always feels great. Slogging around in PoE2 maps generally does not, even if the combat feels more fluid in general. That said, the UI in 1 is pretty godawful and is completely outdone and mostly fixed by 2, especially the controller binds.
Both games explain their mechanics in the same way, extremely poorly. You'll have to fumble your way through whatever league mechanics never got explained properly in game (which is most of them) until you understand whats happening or what you need to do, but most of them aren't too difficult to figure out.
As someone that has been a huge fan of ARPGs basically since they were born with the original Diablo, I think this may actually be my choice for the best ARPG ever made. D2 obviously has a lot of history behind it and nobody would question the gameplay, but I'd say D2 has not aged well and the resurrected release just kinda highlighted to me how much PoE has pushed the ARPG genre forward.
Go play it and dont be scared about the passive tree. Dive in and make a build that could be awesome but likely sucks then try again with something else or go play something else until next league, thats PoE in a nutshell and I love it.
