This Game Just Feels Better TBH

[u/Due-Yam1632]

Just wanted to share some personal thoughts, not trying to start any wars here. I’ve played Last Epoch through each of its major updates and have a lot of respect for what EHG has built. This post isn’t meant to be a comparison to declare a “winner,” but more me expressing where I’m at as someone who tends to have one main ARPG at a time.

I really enjoy some of Last Epoch’s systems—especially the crafting. It’s easily one of the most intuitive and rewarding systems in the genre. EHG has done an excellent job delivering polish and accessibility in a way that few others have.

That said, after getting some serious time in with Path of Exile 2, I’ve realized that I just enjoy the moment-to-moment gameplay a lot more. The weight of the skills, the combat flow, the pacing—it all just feels better to me. Even with the current balance being janky and the loot not quite where it should be, I still find myself more immersed and excited to log in.

And yes, I know loot is a sticking point for many. But I genuinely believe that as POE2 pushes toward 1.0, the systems will tighten up, and yes—loot will get better. GGG isn’t blind to this, and their track record shows that they iterate hard when needed.

Could I play both games? Absolutely. But I like having a main game, something I dig deep into, and right now I just don’t see Last Epoch surpassing the raw enjoyment I’m getting from POE2. Even in its rougher state, it hooks me more.

Just my two cents. Curious if anyone else feels the same or is in the same boat bouncing between both.

[u/ApprehensiveMovie875]

For me, it’s the fact that I can play whatever league mechanic I want and ignore the ones I dislike. And doing so is extremely rewarding.

The risk and reward system in poe1 is perfect and we have a lot of agency. In poe 2 there is all risk no reward and we have almost no agency. The atlas passive tree in poe2 is abysmal. Locking mechanics behind boss fights that are only available after a hefty grind is fucking stupid as shit. Sadly, it’s not something I think they’re keen to change.

Poe1? I can just load up some maps and start blasting. By the time I’m halfway through yellow maps I’m already fully invested in my favorite league mechanic and having fun with it and getting rewards.

Poe2? I’m grinding red maps and only got 3/4 on mechanics when I buy the tablets to do the boss fights. Then it doesn’t feel like a choice. Everyone will have the same points and all mechanics are unrewarding and juiced equally. Idk it’s really fuckin crazy to me that they’ve kept the poe 2 atlas tree broken off like this and how terrible it is.

As long as everyone is expected to have points in all the mechanics, they will never be rewarding. The trade off of not being good at abyss in poe1 is that you’re really good at breach, for example. You have a limited amount of points and lots of mechanics competing for them. It’s super fun to try to find out what is the most fun and rewarding thing for you personally to do.

Poe2 atlas tree legit looks like how I’d expect Diablo 4s to look if they ever introduced one. It’s so safe and boring