Path of Exile: Crucible heard you like skill trees

Who likes skill trees? Path of Exile players do and that's why the Crucible update takes the idea to a new level.

Path of Exile has been known for many things over the years. It's known for being one of the most engaging dungeon crawlers available today. It's known for its rich lore that continues to grow with each update. Near the top of the list of things it is known for is its skill tree, which blows away most other games, in terms of sheer size and scope. The team at Grinding Gear Games has heard that Path of Exile players love skill trees, which is why they are one of the big focuses of the game's next update, Crucible.

Path of Exile's upcoming Crucible Challenge League will take the game's skill trees to a whole new level. In addition to building a skill tree for individual players, Crucible opens the door to weapon-specific skill trees. The idea is to select a weapon and forge it over time across Crucible encounters in order to further refine a user's playstyle. Crucible encounters involve channeling weapons through an ancient forge and using it in battle against molten monsters, which become stronger as the player's weapon is forged. It's possible to take on bigger, stronger baddies to level weapons up faster, but those who fly too close to the sun can be defeated and have to essentially start from square one. The rewards are worthwhile, because reaching the Forge of the Titans will allow players to potentially combine skill trees together to create weapons of incredible power.

While the Crucible Challenge League is the main focus of Path of Exile's next update, other parts of the game will receive some noteworthy updates. The endgame is becoming further refined with the introduction of Atlas Gateways, which offer new nodes for instant travel across the Atlas Passive Tree. This will allow players to get to specific destinations in less time, allowing them to approach the endgame at their own pace.

As for Path of Exile as a whole, look for some major changes to the game's passive skill tree and Masteries. More than one of the Masteries have been totally reworked with Grinding Gear citing the desire for more interesting effects. Those who have their favorite Masteries may want to check if theirs is affected, but the development team notes that opportunities for newer, more exciting builds will be available. Likewise, select Ascendancy classes are being reworked to add new tools that make them more fun to use. Plus, nine new Vaal Skills are being added to improve on existing skills for a little extra boost.

It won't be long before players can check out Path of Exile's next big update. Crucible will come to PC on Friday, April 7. PlayStation and Xbox users will receive it on Wednesday, April 12. For more information, check out the full livestream from the Path of Exile Twitch channel.

Ozzie has been playing video games since picking up his first NES controller at age 5. He has been into games ever since, only briefly stepping away during his college years. But he was pulled back in after spending years in QA circles for both THQ and Activision, mostly spending time helping to push forward the Guitar Hero series at its peak. Ozzie has become a big fan of platformers, puzzle games, shooters, and RPGs, just to name a few genres, but he’s also a huge sucker for anything with a good, compelling narrative behind it. Because what are video games if you can't enjoy a good story with a fresh Cherry Coke?