Among the games, the most popular one is MMORPG. The leader of this type is WOW Cataclysm Classic, and there is also the very popular Elden Ring released in 2022. Among them, ARPG is a branch of MMORPG, and the classic representative works are Diablo series and Path of Exile.
Since its release, Path of Exile has always claimed to surpass the Diablo series. Because its game style and gameplay are highly similar to Diablo, it has always been called a copy of Diablo. However, as each Expansion of Path of Exile is accompanied by the update of different gameplay, it can also be seen that GGG has also put a lot of effort into this game. Path of Exile's original core gameplay: a huge and complex passive skill tree, which provides players with a different gaming experience, but also makes it more difficult for novice players to get started. Another feature is Path of Exile's original in-game economic system.
Path of Exile, Diablo, and WOW are all classic retro RPG games, while Elden Ring is a game closer to the present era. The styles of these four games are very similar, so Path of Exile is in a very awkward situation.
In terms of classicism and style, it cannot compare with Diablo series and WOW.
In terms of game graphics and game popularity, it cannot compare with Elden Ring. This backward situation makes Path of Exile eager to change.
So it has been hyping and warming up to release Path of Exile2, but the time has been postponed for too long that players can't keep up the enthusiasm at the beginning. Now Path of Exile can only rely on the different gameplays updated in each season to attract players and keep the game alive. Judging from the number of website clicks and views, the popularity of Path of Exile will only reach its peak at the beginning of the Expansion, and then it will gradually decline until the next Expansion is released.
Since the popularity of Path of Exile is not as good as the Diablo series, GGG needs to carefully choose the release time of the Expansion if it wants to attract players and ensure the popularity of the game, and needs to avoid the release time of other popular games. Similarly, other games will also release new expansions to ensure their popularity. The release schedule of Elden Ring DLC, Diablo 4 S5, and WOW Classic Sod Phase 4 is very tight, which makes the popularity of
Path of Exile 3.25 last for a short time. This is also the problem faced by Path of Exile, which is always suppressed and unable to break through. Maybe Path of Exile can rely on new gameplay to ensure the continuation of the game, but it is not a long-term solution.
