How it feels to play Path of Exile 2 at the moment
Summary
- High-end minion builds, such as Powered Zealot Spectres and Vaal Guards, create significant visual clutter that obscures the game world.
- There is a long-standing ARPG community sentiment that a build’s power is often proportional to how much it covers the screen.
- Game Director Jonathan Rogers has expressed opposition to opacity sliders, prioritizing the “feel” of clear combat telegraphs over visual cleanliness.
- The current challenge for the developers is balancing the need for clear visual feedback with the extreme graphical effects produced by certain skill combinations.
Visual Clutter in High-End Builds
The visual experience of playing Powered Zealot Spectres is characterized by a screen almost entirely filled with effects. This “screen vomit” is excessive and creates a significant lack of visual clarity. Similarly, when leveling through Act 3 using Vaal Guards, the screen becomes dominated by orange fire and red effects.
In the Path of Exile community, there is a common saying: the less you can see on the screen, the better your build is. This refers to the fact that high-tier builds often generate so many projectiles or explosions that the underlying environment and enemies disappear entirely.
Comparisons to Previous Mechanics
This issue of visual opacity is not new. For example, the explosive grenade builds showcased by Zizaran were arguably even worse for eye strain than the current Vaal Guard effects in Path of Exile 2. These examples highlight a recurring theme in ARPG development where player power scales alongside visual noise.
The Developer Stance on Opacity Sliders
The community has frequently requested opacity sliders for spells and effects to mitigate these issues. However, Game Director Jonathan Rogers has argued against this implementation for the following reasons:
- Combat Feedback: The developers want to ensure that if an action is occurring—whether you are hitting an enemy or an enemy is hitting you—it is clearly visible on the screen.
- Game Feel: They believe that reducing the opacity of these effects would take away from the physical “feel” of combat.
- Telegraphing: Telegraphs and impact markers need to be clearly visible to maintain the intended gameplay loop.
The central problem remains how to maintain this philosophy when certain mechanics, like grenades or specific spectres, reach a “crazy extent” that makes the intended visual telegraphs impossible to see regardless.