Path of Exile is receiving some huge content additions next week but what of Path of Exile 2, Grinding Gear Games’ “sequel” that serves as a new free campaign? Initially announced in 2019, it was expected to have a beta last year but faced delays. Speaking to PC Gamer, studio head Chris Wilson said that it will likely launch in 2022.
As for the reasons behind development issues, Wilson said, “I hate to blame COVID for stuff, but that is a big part of it at the moment. We have had difficulty hiring internationally because the borders to New Zealand are closed, so that has curtailed the exponential growth of our asset creation team a little bit. The progress of development hasn’t been as fast as we wanted, and so our goal is to bash as hard as we can during 2021 on Path of Exile 2 stuff and see how much headway we make.”
Wilson said that the team is trying to get “as much done as possible” and will provide an estimate for the release by 2021 end. Regarding whether it would launch some time next year, he replied, “Yeah, I think that’s accurate.”
Unlike the upcoming Echoes of the Atlas, which heavily revamps the endgame, Path of Exile 2 is a more ambitious effort. It includes a new seven act campaign that takes place several years after the first game and 19 new Ascendancy classes. Several major changes like being able to easily six-link all items are also being implemented along with massive improvements to the graphics. As always, stay tuned for more details on the final release.
Path of Exile: Echoes of the Atlas is out on January 15th for PC and January 20th for Xbox One and PS4.