Path of Exile 2 - The Adventures of Alalalaria And Her Many Zombie Friends.

[@tecnza]

Jon is the one necromancer who never summons anyone. standing in the middle of 20 dead bodies and relying on his venom XD

[@FeralXethx]

The cone attack to raise extra really sucks there too, as the focal point means only catching 1 at a time, which is probably why he wasn't using it much... Always running up to a group of dead to cast, and never getting the most benefit out of a single cast. - Honestly, could have made it the main spam attack, and thrown on the extra 40% aoe size to make it his beloved shotgun.

[@masonwilson6919]

Jon....zoom out on that passive skill tree...

[@ecbrown6151]

Perception 1 prohibits this.

[@WhoDunIt2]

Hah! Exactly what I thought. As someone with a couple thousand hours in POE over the years, it's quite interesting watching someone learn POE(2) going in blind. I do wonder when a proper build guide will be looked into. I'm 20 minutes in and so far Jon is in for an amazing trip once he realizes just how deep AND wide this game is.

[@alexanderhetzel8271]

That skill tree seems insane. But sadly, having overly complex systems seems to be the norm for ARPGs these days.

[@fuzzyfuzzyfungus]

Learning to delegate is an important skill for the aspiring master of bone administration.

[@williek08472]

"You know the key strategic weakness of the human race? The dead outnumber the living." -Missy

[@SuperRedNovaDragon]

19:23 you can stack your skeletons from your scepter with the skeletons from the skills to have more skeletons

[@danielf3623]

I'd also highly recommend mixing the skeletal snipers with the skeletal arsonists for the big booms.

[@mrjockt]

⁠@@danielf3623Add Fire Wall and have the Arsonists throw through the Fire Wall for even bigger booms.

[@the_Book_778]

Love the thumbnail for this video.

[@inkyGhosty]

Path of Exile is one of my favourite games ever. Been playing it for a decade now, and I can say PoE 2 is already is a fantastic follow up. Once they get all the EA content in, I reckon it's gonna be a massive game. Never thought Jon would give it a chance, but I'm glad he's open to playing games like this. Thanks, Jon.

[@MostBronzeChunner]

The endgame will improve but I'll admit that the most fun I've had with PoE2 is the campaign. Usually with these games, it's the endgame that I want to rush towards. It's crazy to think that this is the worst this game is ever going to be and yet the game is amazing!

[@inkyGhosty]

@@MostBronzeChunner That's what convinced me this game can be special. Going through the first three acts was incredible, especially the bosses. If they can deliver 3 more acts and all the other classes at this same level of quality, I'm sure the endgame will come together as well.

[@MostBronzeChunner]

@@inkyGhosty it's worth keeping in mind that the endgame was slapped together in a relatively short time period, this was mentioned by Jonathan Rogers during the early access announcement livestream. The endgame will certainly change between now and release. But regardless of that, the endgame is still fun as hell. Grinding Gear Games has a very special game.

[@TOOfunkedUP]

22:37 "It's not poison, it's like... chaos, but whatever" Jon's a natural born Exile

[@ZaberFangAT]

2:59 Jon, Jon, Jon... you only looked at ONE perk tree. Your portrait is actually in the centre of the whole thing. It is BONKERS.

[@liamholmes8487]

Funnily enough, "Can't someone else do it?" is what Elon Musk said when he saw this game...

[@sneakytoe6615]

what an incredible thumbnail

[@fuzzyfuzzyfungus]

I think it's From Software's fault that any encounter with Proper Name of the Adjective Noun will absolutely wreck you unless you know how to dodge roll.

[@HackionSTx]

You mean Name, of the Noun?

[@HY-je5tp]

Also is their fault that people think you are an immortal god if you just constantly dodge roll. Souls players on poe subreddit have been getting a rude awakening finding out it only gives a couple s and is way more situational so you should be running away more often than not..

[@Virjunior01]

I miss the days before Soulsborne polluted everything. Pukerat The Unclean was just a silly little guy

[@JetSteele]

It's only January and already we have the Best Thumbnail 2025 winner

[@user-qb4ex8mh5h]

Teehee, Jon doesn't know what he's gotten into. This game has taken over my gaming life.

[@geoffreygagne]

Really enjoying seeing you give this a go. I love this game so far, its the most fun ive had gaming in a long time

[@TheGwydion777]

As a witch you could've gone for Malaria.

[@hakenbacker]

Always nice to see Jon making friends 7:30

[@RadeonX0X]

Surprised you didn't go with "Malaria"

[@xyzero1682]

"Can someone else play this for me?" asked Elon.

[@matauavatar]

Every time I need an escape, I'll watch MATN. John the nerd is very entertaining

[@mateobonavento3939]

I've never been into this genre of games, but it was super fun watching Jon play this and I'd be down for more.

[@drakenova9738]

That is sadly absolutely impossible, I reckon. The community for this game is EXTREMELY passionate, meaning every single comment section would be 90% backseat gaming :D They would try to help without any bad intentions, but ruin it for John in the process. I have seen this exact scenario play out multiple times for POE1.

[@mateobonavento3939]

@@drakenova9738 That's unfortunate. Jon sounded like he was having a great time and he loves to share those kinds of gaming experiences with us so I thought this could work as a new series, but if that's what it would be like then I'd be glad if he continued on his own free time for this first playthrough.

[@Bobbias]

​​@@mateobonavento3939technically all he has to do is just pretend the comment section doesn't exist. But we all know that's not going to happen. It's clear Jon does appreciate getting some amount of feedback/tips from the audience. The thing about Poe 1 and 2 is that they're balanced around players actually understanding most of the mechanics. They don't necessarily expect you to be a walking encyclopedia, but they expect a solid understanding that is going to be out of reach for someone going in completely blind. Especially someone with no experience in the genre, and with Jon's level of perception. And because so much of the content that the community likes to watch is endgame, the community wants new creators (and players in general) to be able to get to that point and experience those things. And to be fair, it's not like Jon goes completely 100% blind, he does engage with tips from the community. The problem here is that with his level of perception and lack of experience with the genre, and the sheer number of intertwined mechanics that feed off eachother, there's just so much he'll inevitably misunderstand or flat out miss.

[@ChrisElison]

Didn't expect you to be playing this! I might have to try this game, I am a big Grim Dawn and D3 fan, couldn't get into D4.

[@SuperRedNovaDragon]

I think always online kinda killed diablo 4 for me... i recently started playing Arpgs, like just last year. I played D1,2 and 3 and had a ton of fun. I played poe1 then i tried playing diablo cause it does look good but i live in a very rural area and the internets ping isnt the best, not a problem with poe1, or 2 or any other online games but for some reason Diablo 4 i rubberband and lag or no hit register every few seconds. But when poe2 dropped i co-op'ed all of normal and cruel with my brother it was a blast

[@inconspicuoustoaster6310]

I'm completely hooked on this game, it gets that itch that D4 didnt manage to scratch

[@seanmcloughlin5983]

The problem with the zombies isn’t that they kill people It’s that they don’t acknowledge you as their dark lord and master and that simply won’t do

[@LarsaXL]

I'd love to see him play Magicka. Seems like it'd have just his type of humour and be an absolute blast to watch him figure it out.

[@Swedishmafia101MemeCorporation]

Lovely to see you play this game!

[@jayreborn4596]

I absolutely adore this game! Hope you keep playing.

[@meditatedgold2861]

Didn't know i needed this until i saw it as an option , thx Jon for well being Jon much love to all MATN home and all hope all is as well as can be for all , big hugs an cuddles 🤗

[@danielf3623]

That sceptre from the Devourer is nutty for that level >.

[@mrjockt]

My Witch is level 16 and she’s yet to pick up a rare Sceptre😢😢

[@ahuggingsam]

Jon: Oh no! The rust king is here! Rust king: impl Boss for King{ pub fn murder(character: GameObject) -> Result{...}} Jon: .... I'm going to die, aren't I?

[@mr.jglokta191]

To be fair to the miller, I also get a bit cranky when I feel bloated

[@alfraser9083]

Jon it really helps having you health bar above your character's head

[@jamesdrummond7684]

jon with the timely uploads as always

[@LegendAsalis]

Love Poe and Poe2, very excited to see you play through it from a new player perspective. I know its overwhelming at times but I hope you stick with it and enjoy the whole experience!

[@lanceheyen645]

Trying to play a witch with a controller is very frustrating. The game defaults to targeting enemies (not corpses) so it makes it harder to raise minions with skills like unearth.

[@SuperRedNovaDragon]

The right stick aims it so you can override the auto targeting. To me like 2 minutes to figure that out.

[@reliantncc1864]

I don't know why people on a PC would abandon the obviously superior mouse and keyboard for an inferior controller anyway, outside of like sports and racing games.

[@MostBronzeChunner]

Sounds like a skill issue 🤣

[@iniudan]

​​@@reliantncc1864 Carpal tunnel syndrome is a very good reason to do so.

[@Darkkfated]

@@reliantncc1864 The twin-stick movement advantages (assuming it's more comfortable for you) are massively outweighed by every single menu becoming a clumsy, massive time sink. In my opinion.

[@refractionpcsx2]

No no, Jon, the skill tree is ludicrous, even to seasoned ARPG players, you never see anything this insane in any other ARPG (to my knowledge). If you get to grips with this, maybe you should visit other games in the genre, like Diablo, or Grim Dawn. Not sure how good the controller support is though!

[@Bobbias]

Yeah, the only thing that makes it a bit more reasonable is that it's shared between characters and doesn't appreciably change very often. It's still ludicrous, but after enough exposure you do slowly get used to it.

[@refractionpcsx2]

@@Bobbias yes absolutely, everyone gets the same tree so you can do some interesting builds if you're willing to burn points branching out :)

[@anantorizkiadi1800]

The Adventures of Alalalaria, The Necromancer Who Doesn't Necromancing

[@Darkkfated]

Watching him roll halfway through Act I with only 2 basic Skelly Boys was pretty amusing.

[@macattackmicmac]

Oh I've been looking forward to this

[@SuperRedNovaDragon]

I just started a hardcore play-through i love this game

[@HungryChaCha]

I'm stoked I didn't buy POE 2 now, because I get to have a better experience watching you play.

[@Makrillo]

It'll be f2p eventually so really no rush to get into it when it's at its worst stage.

[@Moragnog]

fun to watch a fresh take on a game I have 200 hours in now :D

[@Alwaysquestion123]

I love morrowind but I'm so glad he has different videos thank you Jon

[@daedalus5070]

POE2 made it in to my Steam "most played games of 2024" and it came out on December 6th.

[@SuperRedNovaDragon]

This game is so good. The first week it came out me and my brother co-op'ed and logged 80 hours in it

[@badejong]

I have hundreds of hours in this game and I love it. On my 6th character now playing a Frost Sorceress.

[@manlikemars2929]

We’ve definitely all converted Jon to a soulslike veteran and fan😂

[@irie009]

Welcome Exile

[@Unreliablecaptionbot]

This game looks so addictive

[@arrulf]

OMG OMG OMG ! This makes me so happy!

[@Rateus_Johanson]

6:15 Are those like.., skellington lemurs? 12:06 Luna went to the Elden Ring school of voice acting huh?

[@Lanka0Kera]

Jon.. you could go try some older games in the same genre to see if you'd like them. I can recommend Grim Dawn... one of my favorite games ever. Slightly easier to wrap your head around than Path of Exile's passives and skill interactions with support gems etc.

[@seanmcloughlin5983]

Dragon age Origins has a similar character creation With the player character being where Duncan was to save them And all the others dying horribly somehow. Dwarf commoner, Rots in a cell, human noble? Dies with their family by Howe, City elf? Depending on the gender R worded and killed by the son of the arl of Denerim Just getting hanged is way better by comparison

[@oddcat57]

Didn't get into Diablo,+knows nothing about PoE = me screaming at the screen to heal damnit!

[@SnowyK]

Played the first PoE and seems like the standard affair with 2. Glad you took a crack at it Jon, it can be a time sink though as with this genre.

[@ArcherCC1599]

Jon playing an ARPG? NEEEEEEED MORE!!!!! Many a True Diablo soon?

[@HY-je5tp]

Honestly this game just makes more sense and works better with mouse+keyboard. Just having easier access to menus so you can see that you can toggle more minions to be summoned or scrolling out on the passive tree so you can look around easier and know what nodes to work towards instead of just taking whatever is closest would have made a big difference to this playthough already. Also controller aiming is just not perfect, especially for some classes. They really tried but its hard to map a 2d coordinate pixel aiming system to just a cardinal direction from your character. So hopefully if you do continue then you'll make the switch. Oh also this isnt dark souls, dodge roll isnt the get out of jail free card to cheese everything like Fromsoft has led you to believe. Usually its better to just run away. And really to get the experience just follow a build online otherwise if you don't know what you are doing your damage will fall off hard

[@davidday2014]

Saturday MATN goodness

[@antdrioite]

"... It's still going"

[@Makrillo]

The Passive Tree in PoE2 looks impressive, but there's not that much choice on it I felt like, at least not for the first 30ish levels, which is probably around when the game really starts to come together since you can have supports, auras, heralds etc. and build up your synergies. At least that was my feeling as a melee character in the early days, the summoner / contagion-build seemed to be able to handle the early game a lot better than what I had though.

[@AmyElnah]

Melee is infamously bad right now, especially the warrior, so that might explain some of the issues you had. The deck is really stacked against melee currently, with armour being worse than evasion and energy shield, on death and ground effects, big AOEs to dodge, etc. so they've got a lot to improve by full release

[@AllHailTheKang]

I love when you use that thumbnail

[@nessesaryschoolthing]

6:44 The poor miller; thrice a victim!

[@Syaniiti]

For some reason this reminds me of when Jon tried Dark Souls...

[@iaholmes]

Hi Jon, if you enjoyed this then you might enjoy Grim Dawn. Its a lot of fun too.

[@UCXEO5L8xnaMJhtUsuNXhlmQ]

"can't someone else do it?" Well if you're Elon musk, yes

[@Dear-Rat-Boy]

Yeah, but can you surpass Elon Musk though Jon, huh?

[@Makrillo]

He played it himself so he sorta surpassed him already I think.

[@Zensor0815]

I did not think that you come around playing POE 2 but I am so glad you did. I would definetly enjoy a future sequel to this episode. Just some tips: - Your Spirit (white bar besides Mana) determines how many additional minions you can summon. So you can have your current setup + 2 or 3 additional Minions. - There are synergies between skills. You can use the Skelleton Archer to make Gas clouds that you can ignite and explode with fire spells. - The passive tree is massive but it follows a locial order. Top is caster/intelligence/minions focused, bottom right ranged/dexterity/speed focused and tottom left melee/strengh/toughness. Even as a witch you can basically have the opton to cull enemies down with a two handed hammer and have synergies with your class. I am playing POE 1 since it came out in around 2013 and it is a really deep and complex but so balanced out and fun game. I hope you have the time to get a bit more into it to get hooked like so many newcomers did. I wish you the best Jon

[@nerdiigamer619]

Hop you turn this into a single player version like fall out. But understand there might be some multiplayer aspects

[@Bobbias]

The game is generally balanced around singleplayer gameplay (though you're free to party up if you want). The drop rates for items are balanced around trading items though, meaning it can be quite difficult to find upgrades if you're playing the solo self-found approach. The game has built in support for solo self-found which disables trading/partying entirely for that character and places them in a separate ladder, but that is basically intended as a way for people to make things harder for themself (think creators and no-lifers who can easily and quickly gear out characters).

[@timothy8428]

Remember Jon, level 62 mirror tier staffs are rubbish, apparently.

[@rakiest]

I can't believe you played POE.. commented at start, kinda interested to see how you do

[@syntheticsleep]

Not too bad for a first try! You're definitely going to die, this is Path of Exile after all. I will say, I'd absolutely love a full series here, but I haven't gotten into PoE II yet myself. I'm letting it stay in the oven a bit more, maybe let a couple of leagues come through before I jump in. I do have some good time into PoE, though, and I can tell you this for sure: You're going to need some time to study. The skill tree is actually the EASIEST thing to come to grips with. It's huge, yes, but pretty straightforward all things considered. It's all the other mechanics and synergies, learning how to focus on one or two skills, understanding resistances, etc...all that takes some serious time to get to grips with. I do look forward to a MaTN PoE series though. Would be absolute tons of fun. I think even a PoE I series would be a smash hit, as the community is just fantastic.

[@SuperRedNovaDragon]

With the acts they have right now and the end game loop they have its really great right now. But i understand wanting to wait as well. I personally cant wait for the final 3 acts to be released.

[@syntheticsleep]

@@SuperRedNovaDragon Yeah, I'd like to have more of the campaign because I'm not really an end-game guy. I spent plenty of time in maps, but the endless grind isn't really my thing. More importantly, though, is that I'm waiting for bugs and balance fixes. It's early access after all so I'm just holding out for some big fixes. I can't wait though, it looks great.

[@combatwomble5584]

Sorry but the way John says "welcome" at the begining makes me think hes been replaced by skynet!

[@HelFrostKara]

Well this is reminding of playing Diablo 3 as a necromancer... but is it as satisfying?

[@ogrejd]

I used to love Diablo-alikes (especially Torchlight and the original Path of Exile), but they make my mouse wrist hurt a LOT. Dunno what it is about it, 'cos I don't have that problem with any other type of game... :( edit: And while using a controller would solve the wrist pains, I'm no good using them for twin stick games - my right thumb and my left thumb never seem to have any idea what the other's doing. :P

[@user-qb4ex8mh5h]

You can use WSAD to move in this game, might help with some of your mouse wrist issues. If you enjoy the genre, may be worth checking out.

[@SuperRedNovaDragon]

Poe2 uses auto-targeting sou you rarely use the right stick unless you need to manually aim. As someone who has been gaming on console since 2002 using both simultaneously is easy. But i do get it, my youngest sister has a learning disability and for whatever reason she couldnt, for the longest time use the left stick(move) and right stick(camera-move or looking around) at the same time. I believe it took her about 5 years to learn it.

[@-DM]

Are the names registered online or are there just that many characters in game?

[@SuperRedNovaDragon]

Its players across pc, ps5/ps4 and xbox... so yeah there are a ton of people who play or played the game. So much so that my usual names didnt work either i had to resort to randomly picking a yugioh card out of mg bulk bin to get names... cause im bad at naming things

[@Sletchman]

Still having "only one instance of any given name across every copy sold" is such an idiotic way to restrict names. Immediately makes me not want to buy the game (which looks fun) because of all the frustration previously in MMOs of having to have stupid names or put a bunch of random gibberish in them to create a character which you might not enjoy in the mid-end game and want to create a new one anyway. Just to have to redo the stupid process.

[@thomasl.townsend3191]

As hard as this game is, Jon, at least you didn’t pay someone else to play it and then pass it off as your own like a certain weirdo billionaire.

[@SOTURICAT]

John you will have field day playing exile 2. I have played exile 1 but i can see the skill tree is doubled what it was in exile 1.

[@Sletchman]

This looks great. I haven't played an isometric ARPG since Diablo 2 and was considering getting this as early access. The dumb and unnecessary name restriction is a huge turn off though, and borderline dealbreaker. I don't want to be "Player378957329806743, Saviour of the Grelwood". Coming up with a name that isn't stupid in these fantasy games is hard enough without dealing with that nonsense.

[@brunokopte1347]

A game which scratched the D1/D2 itch (which D3 didn't) was Grim Dawn. The only downside is that Grim Dawn's maps aren't random, so they become predictable after several playthroughs.

[@Sletchman]

@@brunokopte1347 Yeah I see a few comments mentioning Grim Dawn under this vid, I'll have to look into it. At a glance it looks pretty solid, and has that D2 vibe.

[@Bobsikus]

this game really looks as Diablo III should have 13yrs ago, only the topic is different.. gameplay looks great

[@librarianseth5572]

Day 308 of requesting Age of Mythology. Jon at the start saying he wants to pick who lives and who dies reminded me of happier times with movie reviewing robots. Certainly happier than this nightmare realm of corpses and a hero who decides to side with the hordes of the undead.

[@rakiest]

Jon this will be one of the most fun games you play, you've barely even scratched the surface and there's a ton left to be completed. The full game will release in 6mo to 1 year

[@Hellown]

Pity he didn't zoom out on the perk table. Would have loved to hear his reaction to the whole thing.

[@mrjockt]

You need to give the Unearth skill Envenom as a support skill, this will allow your bone constructs to poison those they attack causing even more damage.

[@seanisanalien]

I've never played either :D

[@aaronb3600]

It’s fantastic

[@sergeymelkumov9232]

Still better at it than Elon Musk.

[@Jovian999]

I enjoy this game; it feels good to play, but by mid-Act 2 it feels like I'm just killing hordes of enemies as I try to find the exit to mazes and fight the occasional spongy boss. I'm not sure that's going to be enough for me longterm. Can anyone who's played more of it tell me if this gameplay loop or narrative structure changes up at any stage?

[@theodoremalt1513]

Best of luck, Elon Jon!

[@MostBronzeChunner]

There's going to so many backseat players if this becomes a series. I'm halfway through the video so I don't know if Jon said he'll continue this. But this game is crack.

[@danielf3623]

Woke up, opened my eyes, looked at my phone, saw this announcement, and ran down to my computer cackling. The months of pure Bethesda are forgiven, just for that thumbnail >.

[@mrjockt]

The question is will Jon continue posting PoE2 videos or is this it?

[@Dead-EyeJuncan]

Nice double meaning on the thumbnail.

[@Lucas-gt8en]

Why does every action RPG have to be set in Grey-upon-Misery? I’d love to stomp out some aggressive tomatoes instead of having to fight my way through Great Bri’ish Diablo Souls

[@okonkwojones]

As someone unfamiliar with PoE, but not unfamiliar with the genre: The very high-fidelity graphics -for an ARPG- really makes it difficult for me to read what’s going on. I’d appreciate some stylization in the art design/aesthetic in a (different) ARPG title soon.

[@AmyElnah]

The dark, dreary forest with undead rising setting is really only act 1 currently. Trying to not spoil much, but act 2 and 3 go into great, red deserts with Mad Max/Mortal Engines style caravans and dense jungles with ancient robots as their main locales. And the unreleased act 4 being set around a more Scandinavian city that the player can currently build up in Path of Exile 1, 20 years before 2 takes place.

[@dimitrikemitsky]

​@@AmyElnah damn this makes me think I might try to play it. The biggest thing that turned me off was the locality, couldn't see myself playing through the entire game in the Woods of Undiagnosed Depression.

[@myrecreationalchannel7181]

Why were you restricted on your name? Is this a multiplayer game? I'm not familiar with this game myself.

[@masonwilson6919]

It's an online game so you see other people in towns but not during instances. Like in the Grelwood.

[@myrecreationalchannel7181]

@@masonwilson6919 Not familiar with Grelwood either, but I guess I understand nonetheless. Don't see the appeal of seeing other people in towns if you can't fight with or against them. Doesn't seem like a game that needs to be an online game from what I've seen of it here. Edit: oh, grelwood is in this game, I thought you were referencing a diferent game

[@masonwilson6919]

@myrecreationalchannel7181 the ARPG genre isn't usually PvP. The premise of it is to make strong insane builds and do incredible amounts of damage. This is also co-op and there is also trading involved. PoE is really hardcore in terms of gameplay and status. Where as Diablo (another ARPG), is more casual friendly. Last Epoch (another ARPG) does, though, have an offline mode. I am glad Jon tried this out, the genre isn't for everyone, especially Path of Exile.

[@Pharaphel]

ye, but isn't mouse and keyboard vastly superior?

[@MyPetalmouth]

Algorithm comment!

[@KheSida]

I understand the title after watching, but my initial thought was something about a billionaire...

[@senhowler]

Are we sure this isn't Diablo?

[@bobskool]

Down to the mysterious stranger who should have died of their wounds

[@WERNUTZ]

Try Alternative spelling of Aria ARYA!

[@FFNOJG]

Literally any name you can think of will be taken lol

[@senhowler]

@@FFNOJG That's how you get "xxxRazorDog255221xxxbitches" names in games. How dumb are the developers?

[@mrb6938]

level locked online multiplayer game..... goodness me john, did you wake up and think 'i want to play a game made by left handed people'?

[@jessie699]

Day 349/1230 of requesting Jon play a game nobody will remember, like Majesty: A Fantasy Kingdom Sim.

[@ishill85]

fake gamer, using skeletons to boost, smh.