We’ve got the latest details on Path of Exile 2 1.0 straight from Grinding Gear Games at Exilecon 2026, as the huge ARPG goes free to play.
In just over one month, Path of Exile 2 goes free for everyone with its 1.0 launch, and it's set to be a monumental moment for the sequel to one of the most beloved action RPGs in recent years. From its early Diablo 2 inspirations, developer Grinding Gear Games has grown into the ARPG powerhouse to beat, and its second outing is aimed at being bigger, bolder, and yet more approachable than ever before. I'm at the big Exilecon 2026 showcase to bring you the full details on PoE 2 1.0 and everything we can expect on release day.
The full Path of Exile 2 launch will see it move out of its paid early access and become a free Steam game, almost two years to the day after it first began. In that time, GGG has massively expanded the campaign and endgame, along with bringing us several new classes - but 1.0 now brings that main story to its grand conclusion. Of course, it's only the start of what's to come, with years of seasonal leagues ahead of us, but what's on show today courtesy of Game Directors Jonathan Rogers and Mark Roberts is going to leave PoE 2 players feeling very full over the holiday break.
If you want the quick rundown, Acts Five and Six will wrap up the PoE 2 campaign, and after how impressive the fourth chapter was I'm extremely eager to see those play out. The new classes are two returning favorites: the Duelist (specializing in swords) and, as a recent teaser hinted, the dagger-wielding Shadow. The launch league is Conquerors of Wraeclast, essentially a whole strategy layer atop the existing game where you can recruit an army, build your own castle, and wage war against rival factions. Alongside that comes new skills, passive tree reworks, and a massive uniques overhaul.
Those concluding chapters comprise 24 more areas and 18 new major bosses, along with "an encounter with the Blight." Act Five will take us back to Oriath, to put a stop to the Twilight Order and The Beast. Rogers, however, is keen to stress that a lot of the most fun and exciting battles we'll run into are the bigger non-boss enemies, so make sure you explore every region thoroughly so you don't miss a thing.
We've already had a pretty deep dive into the Duelist, but we get to see the Shadow in action today courtesy of Roberts, and it starts out with two Ascensions: Assassin and Infiltrator. It's proficient with daggers and traps, but it's also a stealth specialist. How does that work? You'll be able to see enemy vision cones and circles, and if you strike from outside of these ranges you'll get powerful bonuses. Stealth resets when you score a kill, allowing you to quickly chain efficient finishing blows. Rogers notes that traps in the original Path of Exile have never really worked like actual "traps," so the way the work here aims to capture that feeling more directly.
The Shadow's traps won't detonate while he's in stealth, and when you attack they'll go off in the exact order you threw them, allowing you to set up powerful synergies. Follow Freeze Trap with a Concussive Trap to shatter it, for example, or use the Poison Gas Trap, spread it with Concussive Trap, and then detonate the cloud with a Fire Trap. You could, however, go in the reverse direction - use Concussive Trap after the Fire Trap and you'll fan the flames on any enemies you've set ablaze.
There are eight traps, giving plenty of combo variety, but the Shadow has many more options as well. You could also hurl Ethereal Knives into monster's souls from the shadows, then detonate them for a burst of Chaos damage. Use these on bigger targets and then throw out an Electrocution Trap to amplify the effect of the shock, allowing you to fry even more massive foes. Another option is to suck out all the knives you've thrown with Blade Vortex and send them spinning around your character, bearing their elemental buffs.
سەرچاوەی فەرمی بە زمانی ئینگلیزی: https://www.pcgamesn.com/path-of-exile-2/exilecon-2026
