PoE2: Future Updates to Shift Focus from New Classes

If you're a fan of *Path of Exile 2*, you might be interested to know that new classes won't be the main focus of future updates. This decision comes straight from the game's director, Jonathan Rogers, who shared his insights during a recent Q&A session. Let's dive into why this shift in focus is happening and what it means for the game moving forward.

New Characters Might Not Be Introduced Every Patch

During the Q&A, Rogers explained that the development team has realized that introducing a new class with every patch can be a risky move. He pointed out that while they'd love to include a new class with each release, it's not always feasible due to the unpredictable nature of game development. I would like it if every release would have a class, but I would say that we actually learned something during the production of this cycle, which is that it was a mistake to have a class as a wedge for the development of your expansion, Rogers stated.

The issue, according to Rogers, is the trade-off between having a fixed release date and ensuring the content meets expectations. For instance, the focus on including the Huntress in the next patch led to constant delays. We have to have the Huntress in the next patch, so therefore, the date had to float, and that meant that this expansion ended up taking a lot longer than what we had hoped, he explained.

Rogers emphasized that he would prefer a fixed release date over committing to new classes, as this would allow for more predictable updates. While I’m very keen to have a class in the next expansion, I’m not going to promise that because that would mean we can’t fix the date anymore, he added. This approach stems from their experience with the *Dawn of the Hunt* development, highlighting the importance of timely updates for players who want to see progress without waiting too long.

Players really do want to see forward progress, and they don’t want to be waiting six to nine months before they see a big update, Rogers said. So I think it’s important that we’re constantly giving them stuff in a reasonably timely manner, so for that reason, the classes are less predictable.

However, there's good news for fans. Rogers assured that every patch will include new Ascendancies, and he's eager to introduce even more classes post-Early Access. As I said, Ascendancies, we can definitely do; maybe even after release, we continue to add even more classes as I’m certainly keen to add more, he confirmed.

Dawn of the Hunt Brings More Changes to Endgame

Alongside the Huntress, the upcoming *Dawn of the Hunt* patch will introduce over 100 new skills, support gems, and unique gear focused on enhancing the midgame and endgame experiences. However, the real focus is on making bosses much harder. Rogers explained that they want to extend the time it takes for players to reach overwhelming power levels that can trivialize the endgame. There are certainly some things that are going to have to be nerfed because they’re completely trivializing certain mechanics, he noted. People are getting [to] the point of complete outrageousness a little bit too early.

Rogers expressed disappointment over how quickly players defeated Pinnacle Bosses in the past, with one player taking just fourteen seconds to defeat a boss due to an extremely powerful build. He hopes the new progression and balance changes will make the first encounter with Pinnacle Bosses much more challenging. The first time you fight a Pinnacle Boss, it’s going to be a hard fight and crazy. But as you fight the boss more times and you get more items and you get to optimize your build and stuff, you can get to the point where you kill the boss in fourteen seconds. It’s just that it’s not your first experience, Rogers explained.

He concluded that the balance changes aim to slow down the climb to becoming overpoweringly strong. You should always be able to feel powerful and certainly should have that fantasy there, just not right off the bat. So that’s where a lot of our balance changes are focused.

Game Director is Happy With Its Ruthless Difficulty

The difficulty of *Path of Exile 2*'s campaign has sparked debate among players, with some finding it too easy and others too hard. Rogers is satisfied with the current difficulty level and believes that player opinions will evolve over time. He noted that many complaints came from players who had only experienced the previous game and not the current one, leading to comparisons that might not be fair.

Rogers is optimistic that players will find the game easier once they become more familiar with it. I don’t think we’re gonna get nearly as many complaints about it this time, and that’s because once you know how to play, you’re going to find the experience a lot easier, he said. He also mentioned that if the feedback remains negative, they'll have more data to refine the game, but he's hopeful that players will adjust and enjoy the challenge. People are often surprised. A lot of the times what happens is that the second time people play through the game, they will talk about how they (GGG) must have changed the balance, but the actual reality is that they just got better at the game, Rogers concluded.