I really loved Path of Exile and logged a couple hundred hours on it during Winter Break 2023. It has a lot of really interesting mechanics which build up to a really interesting gameplay loop in the shape of dynamics. The core mechanics of Path of Exile are moving (normally or with abilities), attacking with abilities, upgrading a skill tree, finding and equipping equipment, and socketing gems. These mechanics interact intimately to create a dynamic experience of optimization, where one’s preparation can greatly improve their overall gameplay experience in the otherwise hack-and-slash, dungeon crawler RPG. For example, the gem-socketing mechanic allows players to unlock new abilities, but they can only socket gems according to the available, color-coordinated slots on their equipment (see image on the right).
These new abilities can either be passive or active, and if they are active, they can either be utility skills or attack skills. Utility skills define the player’s movement during combat, and almost every build in the game has some sort of flash, blink, or teleport ability that allows the player to progress through dungeons faster, creating a run-and-gun feel for the player. Each permutation of gem-socketing and ability management creates a new dynamic for the player to experience, which evoke different play styles.
Upgrading the skill tree as you level up also makes you passively stronger as the game goes on. As you can see, the vast amount of customization in Path of Exile allows each player to dynamically vary their play style between dungeons, role playing as an attentive and elusive fire-wielding archer or a daunting and abrasive necromancer-monk leaping through hordes of enemies by virtue of their gem-acquired abilities. As for aesthetic, Path of Exile fits fantasy, challenge, discovery (of new builds and play styles), and expression (of one’s own builds and play styles). For me, the ever-changing dynamic, constant-upgrade-loop hack-and-slash nature of Path of Exile is what kept me playing the same campaign over and over again.
