Many Path of Exile 2 players are eager for an alternative to the campaign. We asked Grinding Gear Games if there are plans to allow players to skip the story.
Many of you probably enjoy Path of Exile 2 most of all where the game continues after the campaign: in the Atlas, with the revamped endgame mechanics, and when perfecting builds. That’s exactly why one point keeps drawing criticism:Anyone who wants to play a new character has to go through the story every time.
We asked Grinding Gear Games if alternative leveling paths to the endgame are planned.The answer is pretty clear.
The community wants shortcuts
While the mood was largely positive under our last article on Path of Exile 2, one point of criticism kept coming up in the comments:the length and mandatory nature of the campaign. Especially for players with family and work commitments, the journey to the endgame often becomes a test of patience.
Here is a selection of your comments from the comment section:
- marcel110891loves the game, but as a family man with a full-time job, he finds the length of the campaign downright frustrating. He’s waiting for a way to skip the story and level up directly with endgame content.
- Pantheagrees wholeheartedly. After 180 hours of play, he’s only reached the endgame once because he likes to try out new classes. At the very least, the ability to skip the story would be desirable for alt characters.
- Extrawursthas already played through the story over 15 times and simply can’t stand it anymore. Even though it goes faster now, it remains a tedious chore.
- El Cativodisagrees. With about 16 hours of playtime for the campaign, he says it’s easily manageable over a few evenings, even if you’re short on time.
What the Game Director Says
We have forwarded your concerns to the developers and received a clear response from Jonathan Rogers, the Game Director of Path of Exile 2. Anyone hoping for a pure grind path to leveling up, as is possible in Diablo 4, for example, will unfortunately have to brace themselves.
Jonathan Rogers explained the following to us regarding your criticism:
- “Progressing through the campaign is an important part of character development, andskipping it is not something we would do.”
- “That said, we are constantly making improvements to the campaign to streamline it for existing players who know what they’re doing. In Update 0.5.0, we implemented a huge number of these improvements.“
- ”We’ve added many objects that make it easier to find things, and shortened many areas, which has significantly reduced the average time to complete the campaign.”
Streamlining Instead of Cutting
The good news is that Grinding Gear Games is at least aware of the problem:But instead of making the story completely optional, Grinding Gear Games wants to make the existing campaign as seamless as possible for veterans. So the changes are at least heading in the right direction.
Even though you still have to work your way through the story, the goal of your journey has evolved significantly compared to earlier versions. Mechanics like Breach or Delirium now offer their own hub areas on the Atlas and reward you with their own storylines that culminate in intense boss fights. There is now a real overarching narrative that meaningfully connects the countless pieces of content and gives you a clear direction.
What do you think of the current changes? Are the area cuts enough to motivate you to level up additional characters, or would you prefer a complete alternative to the story in the long run? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments!
