Today, we’re going to talk about the changes to Acts 1-4 in Path of Exile’s upcoming highly anticipated 3.0 release. There’s a plethora of new content to be found in Path of Exile: The Fall of Oriath, and enough changes to base game mechanics to keep veteran players frantically crunching numbers. The aesthetics of the game have gotten an overhaul in some important parts, and maps, as well as the mini-map, have all gotten a bit of rework.
Digital Makeover
The textures in Path of Exile: The Fall of Oriath look crisper, and the outcroppings and mountains that line the maps look far nicer than they did previously. It’s not just the terrain that got a bit of love — some of the monsters, too, have received extensive redesigns. The hounds in Act I are darker and more visually appealing, with brown and grey coloring instead of a gaudy bright orange. They’ve also added at least one new monsters: rambling packs of Zombies rolling inside wheels, which looks pretty hilarious. (These can be found just before the Prison in Act I.)
They have also added a handful of new aesthetic armour, available through purchase of the supporter packs. There are four new sets, and all of them — with perhaps the exception fo the purple one — look excellent. I’ve borrowed an image assembled by XaerrO on Reddit to show them all off.
These come along with a huge change to how cosmetics will be worn in Fall of Oriath. Currently, players have to bind cosmetics to certain gear. You can swap things around, but it’s tedious and inconvenient. With the new system, however, you simply bind cosmetics to the character, which lets you swap the actual gear freely.
Map and Mini-Map Changes
The biggest change in Path of Exile 3.0 are the extensive tweaks that the developers at Grinding Gear Games have made to the map itself. The in-game mini-map has undergone a massive change, and looks spectacular. Previously, Path of Exile’s map was blocky and largely useless. It didn’t clearly show where you’d been, and navigation was occasionally counter-intuitive. The new map has added colors and clearly shows the outline of locations your character has visited. Even as someone who doesn’t like change, the new mini-map in Path of Exile: Fall of Oriath is amazing.
Quite a few of the maps in acts one to four have been slightly changed. Waypoints have been moved around for easier access, and they’ve added an additional one on the first floor of the Chamber of Sins. The Sewers in Act III have been almost entirely redone. Previously, the Sewers were separated into three sections across three zones, and the Warehouse District was in between them. In 3.0, you now enter the first sewer and it leads directly into the other two. You can collect all three busts without ever leaving the sewers! Who needs sunlight, right?
Furthermore, the Warehouse District has been removed entirely. You resurface in The Marketplace when you leave the now conjoined Sewers. Personally, I love this change. Act 3 has always been long and tedious, and this kind of streamlining is a welcome addition.
What’s Next for Path of Exile: The Fall of Oriath?
There’s still plenty for me to discover as I dive headfirst into Fall of Oriath over the next couple weeks. Check the site regularly over the next month for in-depth discussions and analysis of the skill tree, builds, and new content.