Summary
Path of Exile 2is enjoying its time in the limelight, and while its Steam player count took a bit of a dip over the holidays, it’s still steady at over 330,000 concurrent players. More patches are likely coming throughout 2025, with some new features and additions that may further shake up the game and its current meta, especially when morePath of Exile 2classes, skills, and weapon types are added.Path of Exile 2is quite different from its predecessor in multiple ways, and it’s worth taking a look at two day-one gameplay features that dramatically improve the sequel’s quality of life for many players.
One could argue thatPath of Exile 2’s approach to gameplay is dramatically different from the original game, and that may be true for the first two or three Acts, and especially on the first character one makes. However, the endgame design and how players are approaching it may feel much more similar in both titles, as fast and safe ranged builds are still the way to go, even withPath of Exile 2’s focus on a slower loop. Still,Path of Exile 2allows players to change how they play on PC and pause the game at any time on any platform.
Why Path of Exile 2 PC Players Should Check Out WASD Movement
It may seem strange for action RPG fans, as these games tend to favor a mouse and keyboard approach for PC, butPath of Exile 2adds WASD movement. This has one specific advantage over mouse and keyboard, and that is to move backward while casting spells and using attack skills, which is much harder to do on mouse and keyboard and may even require players to stop attacking for a brief moment to reposition.
In comparison,Diablo 4 didn’t have WASD movement on launch, but eventually added it.
WASD movement is often underrated due to the dominance of mouse and keyboard options for the genre, butPath of Exile 2’s skills can mostly be used while moving, making this a great choice. This is particularly true for those who preferPath of Exile 2builds for the Sorceress, for example, as moving backward while casting makes it safer than rushing at full speed ahead or standing still. Freedom of movement can also benefit classes like the Warrior and the Monk, but as inherently melee characters, it may feel less necessary overall.
Path of Exile 2’s Pause Feature is a Game-Changer
Perhaps more importantly,Path of Exile 2can be paused at any time on any platform, and this can be done in three ways: by going to the game’s menu without pressing any of the options, by pressing the map key, and by pressing the skill tree key. This is a huge quality-of-life feature because players can walk away from the game at any time if they need to and not worry about timed challenges or enemies killing them. On top of that, some players use the game menu pause method to see which attacksPath of Exile 2bossesare about to use and then avoid them.
Path of Exile 2’s in co-op modecan also be paused, as long as all party members press one of the pause buttons. This requires some coordination, but it’s easily doable, and it’s an equally important quality-of-life addition.
Even if players don’t want to use this “trick” in boss fights, the pause function actually has added value when pausing the game via the map key or the passive skill tree key, as players can access their inventory and even the Skill Gem page while the game is paused and make changes there. For example, one may want to swapPath of Exile 2’s Support Gemsaround during an encounter if they see that their current combination is not effective. The pause feature is a huge change, and in a landscape where many ARPG players who go Hardcore use log-out macros, being able to pause naturally is a big deal. However, the game doesn’t exactly advertise this, and it’s a big addition that shouldn’t be ignored.
Path of Exile II
WHERE TO PLAY
Path of Exile 2 is a next generation free-to-play Action RPG created by Grinding Gear Games. Journey across the deadly continent of Wraeclast, meeting multiple immersive cultures while facing off against evil in many forms. Path of Exile 2 features twelve character classes, 240 Skill Gems, hundreds of equipment base types, a six-act campaign, more than a hundred unique boss fights, a deep endgame system and so much more. Play with your friends without losing any progress with couch co-op, cross-play and cross-progression.
