What is PoE to you?

I see a lot of debate at the moment and a lot of people telling others what PoE should or should not be. It's a game with many systems that can be played a variety of ways, so... what is PoE to you and do you feel it is working or not working for how you play? This might even give GGG some useful context too.

Examples:

1. End game Meta efficiency: Maps and uber bosses. Use of most efficient builds borrowing from streamers.

2. Almost wholly maps, some trade for gear.

3. Path of Building! Gameplay just testing.

4. Solo play through story content, recreating new chars. Maybe some twinking, but mostly ssf.

5. Hardcore only, push as fast and far as possible

6. Conquering additional game modes: labs, delves, new league mechanics

7. Speed levelling and challenges

For me, I haven't played for a while and just can't find a way back with the constant growth of currency and boring gameplay loop.

I'd fit under example 4 above, of which I think GGG's design direction (and probably a large proportion of the playerbase) isn't a focus as it seems to be seen as a transient phase to end-game. That's fine, it would take substantial changes to the looting experience and monster interactions for my interest to increase enough to jump in again. Every time I look though, it seems like there's a whole lot more *work* to do to get somewhere, rather than just the gameplay loop.

For me POE died when Chris sold his "vision" to Tencent. It is nothing more than a cash grab for MTX and mystery boxes. Sad but true! I am still trying the leagues but stream priorities, constant lags/disconnects, uninteresting league mechanics and no QOL features made this game a bad experience for me.

lately its been nerfs.

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cjimaras wrote:

For me POE died when Chris sold his "vision" to Tencent. It is nothing more than a cash grab for MTX and mystery boxes. Sad but true! I am still trying the leagues but stream priorities, constant lags/disconnects, uninteresting league mechanics and no QOL features made this game a bad experience for me.

What is the experience you were enjoying though? That's what I'm trying to bring out, where the impacts of change are good and bad.

Solo questing especially on a new character or build that I never tried or experienced before.

I like doing quests because I like having a goal or a direction where I need to go next. Maybe that's why I like League challenges because it's like an extension of the quest after the campaign until the very end of the PoE experience.

So I'm more of the what's at the end of the journey guy. The actual journey doesn't matter much to me as long as what's at the end of the journey is worth it. I don't mind either if I got it in the end or not as long as at least I tried.

explore new things. end up skipped 4 leagues in a row. GJ GGG

PoE is a video game to me, that I play to have fun.

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DoubleU wrote:

PoE is a video game to me, that I play to have fun.

Very insightful.

Hybrid of 4 and 6... but really doesn't capture how I play exactly. I play SSF and try to push a character until it reaches that "wall" that is too hard/boring for a SSF character to climb. As a byproduct, I pick up subgoals like Delving or Heist, or really what ever that particular character can accomplish.

I've yet to find a character than can I can complete the atlas with. Maybe this one! Probably not. We'll see. I'm really emphasizing defensive passives on this build. He'll probably not do enough damage to get through. We'll see.

It's a game that encourages experiments from both the developers and players. It's a constantly changing game, a game that can be played forever. The game is like an ARPG sandbox, you can have fun without 'finishing' the game. I can find fun in playing new characters and never complete the Atlas or kill Sirus.