Disastrous Path Of Exile 2 Update Shut Down The Game For 5 Hours, Angering Already Annoyed Players

By Kyle Gratton

Published May 1, 2025

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Path Of Exile 2’s Loot Update Was Meant To Be A Step In The Right Direction

A Popularly Requested Change

The offending update was meant to correct a pervasive issue that has dogged the game since its release into early access. It was meant to reshuffle Path of Exile 2's loot pool, to make significant encounters result in equally significant rewards. Players have long been frustrated that loot drops were essentially random; i.e., defeating a boss doesn't necessarily mean you'll get high-rarity items as a drop.

The idea is sound, and it's the exact type of work that is made possible by early access – addressing player before the game is fully released – but it had unforeseen consequences that required Grinding Gear Games to shut down the servers to address. Skill Gems are an incredibly important part of POE 2's skill systems, dictating which actions a player character can take in combat. The update's mistake was an oversight in the code for certain Skill Gems, where attempting to activate them simply deleted the item instead.

Path Of Exile 2 Players Were Already Frustrated With The Game

Recent Changes Have Not Gone Over Well

Characters with the Prism of Belief Diamond In Path of Exile 2 — Custom Image by Katarina Cimbaljevic.

It's unfortunate that such a well-meaning update ended up being a catastrophe, because Path of Exile 2 players have been voicing many concerns recently. POE 2 had a very successful launch into early access, but players have slowly soured on various aspects of the experience – the aforementioned loot issues being one. Dawn of the Hunt made sweeping changes to combat that have not gone over well, and this failed update saga, though largely rectified now, only adds fuel to the fire.

Early access can be a blessing for many games, especially those that depend on a symbiotic relationship with players, but it can also stunt a game's growth when mistakes like this are made. It's largely going to be die-hard fans that stick with a game through its unfinished early access state, and alienating them too much can result in permanent damage to the game's popularity. Path of Exile 2 has a lot going for it, and competes at the top of the ARPG genre, so hopefully this unfortunate update is only a slight bump in the road.