Path of Exile 2 Now a Full Standalone Sequel, Closed Beta Details Revealed

ign.com:

Path of Exile 2 has graduated into a full standalone sequel to the original Path of Exile, fully shaking off its origins as an expansion pack.

"When we announced Path of Exile 2 at ExileCon 2019, we told you guys that we were releasing Path of Exile 2 as an expansion to Path of Exile 1 and that both campaigns would be playable in the same game client with a shared endgame," director Jonathan Rogers explained.

"But Path of Exile 2's scope has continued to grow and grow. It's far more than just an expansion with a new campaign, it's entirely new monsters, skills, mechanics, classes, everything you would expect from the next generation of action RPGs. Not to even mention revamps of most of the Path of Exile 1 league content. This thing is freaking huge."

According to Rogers, the decision was made when the dev team realized that the original approach would "essentially be destroying a game that people love for no reason." The result is that Path of Exile 1 and 2 will be separate, with their own "mechanics, balance, endgames, and leagues."

Despite the split, Rogers said that Path of Exile 2 and its predecessor will continue to be a "shared platform," with both games being fully-supported and microtransactions being available across both games.

"Everything you have ever purchased or will purchase in the future will be usable in both games unless it's hyper-specific to the content of one of them. You can't be a bear in Path of Exil 1, so a reskin of your bear form isn't going to do anything. But you absolutely can equip the awesome sword skin you got and use all your stash tabs," Rogers said.

However, because Path of Exile's story continues directly into Path of Exile 2, Grinding Gear Games plans to wind down story content for the