Diablo series had always been the king of ARPGs that collect a lot of loot and cultivate character growth for many years until Path of Exile 1 appeared. As two games with similar core gameplay, the two will inevitably be compared together. Which one is better?

This question is really important for these two games, because in essence, a large part of the player groups of the two games overlap. Both Diablo 4 and POE 2 are very time-consuming games, so for most players, they don’t have time to play both games at the same time, they can only choose one.

So let’s compare the advantages and disadvantages of the two games below:

Story

There is no doubt that the story has always been Diablo 4’s strength. Diablo 4 continues the story of the previous generation and tells a deep and legendary story. Excellent dubbing and top CG make players deeply immersed in it, as if they really participated in a great battle.

Path of Exile 2 uses an obscure and fragmented narrative. The plot of the whole story is buried in the dialogue and text of the characters. The narrative ability of POE 2 has improved compared to POE 1, but this method is not enough to compare with Diablo 4.

Combat

From the experience version, the experience brought to players by Path of Exile 2 and Diablo 4 is quite different.

Players of Path of Exile 2 need to have a high reaction speed and the ability to judge the situation. They need to dodge the attacks of bosses and monsters. If you are a Souls-Like player, you can understand how important dodge is in POE 2. In general, players can continue to feel the challenge brought by combat in Path of Exile 2.

Diablo 4 continues the tradition of combat. It can bring players continuous and smooth combat, but it cannot bring players a sense of challenge in the late game. When you come to the late game, your character has become a legend, and no monster can still threaten you.

In terms of combat, POE 2 is more complicated than Diablo 4.

Character Building

In terms of the freedom of character building, Path of Exile 2 has won an undoubted victory. Path of Exile 2 has updated its class system, allowing players to have skills other than classes. You can be a Titan who casts spells, or a monk who uses crossbows. And moreover, for many players, when they see the very complicated talent tree of Path of Exile 2, they may faint.

The character building of Diablo 4 is relatively restricted. The growth and skills of the character are related to the game process and will be restricted by the character. This may disappoint players who like free matching.

Loot System

POE 2’s currency system is worth studying. Unlike Diablo 4 Gold, Path of Exile 2 is more important in that the loot and drops are various Orbs. For example, POE 2 Chaos Orb and Exalted Orb. These gems are not only used to measure the value of items in Path of Exile 2, but they also have very important uses themselves. The only thing that people criticize is that POE 2’s currency drops very little, and perhaps the developers will make adjustments in the development of subsequent versions.

Diablo 4 is very traditional, giving you a lot of loot with dazzling colors and lights. This is a very classical way, but the drops are nothing new. Since the enemies scale with the player’s level. So it’s hard to feel what changes better drops can bring to the game.

Skills

This should be part of the character construction, but the two games are very different.

Diablo’s skill upgrade is more of a linear upgrade. Each class has a fixed upgrade route without too many changes. This is very good for novice players, which allows them to reduce mistakes in character construction.

The skill release of POE 2 relies on the combination of skill gems and POE 2 Items. Players can use any skill in the skill gem, as long as their attributes can meet the requirements of the skill. The slot system of the skill gem menu allows players to adjust the difference between each skill. If you like free matching, then the skill system of Path of Exile 2 will definitely make you happy.

Acceptance Of New Players

As the fourth installment in the series, many of Diablo 4’s designs are classic designs, which can allow players to save a lot of time to understand and quickly get started. The relatively fixed growth method of each class can also prevent new players from building too weak characters.

However, even for players who have played POE 1, they still need a lot of time to adapt POE 2. Path of Exile 2 not only changes the skill tree system but also changes the way skills are released. At the same time, POE 2 Currency is also different from POE 1. If new players want to play Path of Exile 2 smoothly, they may have to spend more time studying the meaning and use of each concept.

From this point of view, Diablo 4 is more friendly to novice players.

Graphics And Sound Effects

In terms of graphics, both games are excellent. However, although their graphics styles are very similar, they are slightly different in details. In order to create a dark and desperate world, Path of Exile 2 has put a lot of effort into the art design of the game’s currency and map background. In addition, the characters in Path of Exile 2 need to roll and dodge, which requires the development team to make additional adaptations in the art design of skills, which makes the skill design and art design of Path of Exile 2 better.

In terms of sound effects, Path of Exile 2 also has different sound effects for different states, such as when the character walks on broken ice, there will be a crackling sound. Therefore, although both games have very excellent art designs, POE 2 is better in the processing of details.

Endgame

Path of Exile 2 only opens the first 3 Acts now, but it still opens the endgame mode for players, so that players still have plenty of playable content after clearing the main line. Diablo 4 doesn’t have endgame mode, and when game comes to the end, players have few things to do.

Path of Exile 2 has rich game content, suitable for players are willing to spend a lot of time on it and Diablo 4 is suitable for relatively casual players.

Summary

Diablo 4 is exquisite and easy for players to get started, but the process of playing is not too impressive, like a quick tour. The main storyline of Path of Exile 2 is only half open, but the rich game content has already made many players addicted to it, and people are looking forward to the subsequent opening. The complex game system of POE 2 also allows players to conduct in-depth research and continue to develop the possibility of character construction. If you are a loyal player of the Diablo series, then Path of Exile 2 will definitely give you many surprises.