Path of Exile's Massive PvP-Centric Content Update 1.3.0 Announced

Grinding Gear Games, developer of the award-winning action RPG Path of Exile, today announced the upcoming Content Update 1.3.0 -- a player-versus-player-centric content update set to release on December 12 at 5:00 PM PST (2:00 PM New Zealand Time on December 13) as a free update to Path of Exile.

Content Update 1.3.0 will bring forth various new enhancements to Path of Exile, with a heavy focus on improving and accentuating Path of Exile's PvP elements. These additions and improvements include but are not limited to: new Torment and Bloodlines Challenge Leagues, a new PvP-focused Forsaken Master, competitive PvP tournaments with regular Seasons, PvP-only characters, new gems and Unique items, a massive update to the Passive Skill Tree, and much more.

Check out all the new features made available in the 1.3.0 patch in the link below.

Patch notes 1.3.0: Link

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Path of Exile Celebrates Seven Million Players and Widespread Success

In partnership with leading Asian publisher Garena Online, Grinding Gear Games today announced that its critically-acclaimed action RPG Path of Exile has seen unprecedented success following the launch of the game's second expansion, Forsaken Masters, and its official release in Taiwan.

Exceeding expectations of both Grinding Gear Games and Garena Online, Path of Exile has reached a new level of success. Less than one month after the game's official release in Taiwan, Path of Exile saw over one million new Taiwanese account registrations -- a number steadily growing after an incredibly successful Open Beta and launch. Published by Garena Online, the Taiwanese version of Path of Exile features traditional Chinese language support as well as a number of Taiwan-exclusive microtransaction options. Path of Exile went live in Taiwan on August 14, 2014.

Much of the game's ongoing success is due to the acclaim of its latest expansion, Forsaken Masters, as well as Grinding Gear Games' steadfast devotion to keeping Path of Exile updated with new content, which includes a new expansion every few months. Boasting a wealth of new and engaging content, Forsaken Masters has been "extremely well-received" by both new and existing players of Path of Exile, bringing the worldwide total of registered players to well over seven million. Path of Exile also saw a record-breaking number of concurrent players within the past month, reaching a peak of 154,000 players online simultaneously.

In Path of Exile: Forsaken Masters, players cross paths with the seven Forsaken Masters, who aid Exiles in their own specialized way. Each Master offers unique quests, training, mission variations, item crafting and modification options, secret and customizable towns known as Hideouts, tiers of Hideout decorations, and more in exchange for an Exile's help. New Challenge Leagues, revamped boss fights, new lore, new Unique items, new skill and support gems, a PvP Spectator Mode, and dozens of other additions have also been implemented as part of the Forsaken Masters expansion. Path of Exile: Forsaken Masters was released as a free content update on August 20, 2014.

Interested gamers can download and play Path of Exile via Steam, or by registering on the official Path of Exile website at www.pathofexile.com.

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Path of Exile: Forsaken Masters Expansion is Now Live

Grinding Gear Games, developer of the award-winning action RPG Path of Exile, announced that Path of Exile: Forsaken Masters, an entirely new content expansion, is now live as of 3:00 PM PST (10:00 AM New Zealand Time on August 21) as a free update to the game. Path of Exile: Forsaken Masters offers both new and returning Path of Exile players a slew of new content and features related to the seven Masters.

As per the expansion's title, players will cross paths with the seven Forsaken Masters -- seven skilled individuals who were exiled to the forsaken continent of Wraeclast by Dominus, a powerful entity of corruption and tyranny. Each Master offers unique quests, training, mission variations, item crafting and modification options, secret and customizable towns known as Hideouts, tiers of Hideout decorations, and more in exchange for an Exile's help. New Challenge Leagues, revamped boss fights, new lore, new Unique items, new skill and support gems, a PvP Spectator Mode, and dozens of other additions have also been implemented as part of the Forsaken Masters expansion.

Below is a brief synopsis of the many new features now available in Path of Exile: Forsaken Masters:

Train with the Masters

As players roam the wilderness of Wraeclast, they will sometimes encounter a Forsaken Master. All seven Masters have their own unique missions that they either need help with, or are willing to train Exiles to handle. For example, Haku asks players to cleanse an ancestral area and recover a lost Karui spirit. Vorici provides training in the art of assassination. As players progress through the eight levels of reputation with each Master, more of what these Masters can offer will be unlocked.

The seven Masters each have their own style of mission and each mission has many potential circumstances. As players delve deeper into the realm of Wraeclast, the pool of available mission variations increases, offering players new and unexpected challenges -- all of which can occur anywhere in the game.

Hideouts: Customizable Towns

In their extensive travels throughout Wraeclast, the seven Masters have discovered ideal locations for an Exile to use as their own secret Hideout. Once a Master's trust is gained, the player will be able to create their own personal and customizable town. Masters residing in a player's Hideout will offer them daily Missions and training as well as advanced crafting options. Players are also able to expand their Hideouts to use as personalized Guild Halls.

Craft and Upgrade Items

Each master specializes in crafting different types of items. As a player gains reputation with a chosen Master, they will gain access to more of that Master's unique crafting options and abilities, such as manipulating an item's sockets or crafting special modifications. Masters also function as vendors that sell items ranging from Skill Gems to Unique items. At higher levels, each Master also sells Magic items with a specific, new, build-defining modification. These can be used as-is or crafted further with either the new Hideout Crafting Benches or the traditional Orb system to create powerful items.

The expansion has also added 16 new Unique Items, some of which are exclusive and may only be found in one or the other of the new Challenge Leagues.

New Challenge Leagues: Rampage and Beyond

With the release of Path of Exile: Forsaken Masters, two new three-month Challenge Leagues have begun, providing players with an opportunity to demonstrate their mastery of Path of Exile. Rampage and Beyond both have unique properties that set them apart from normal play.

Like the Challenge Leagues before them, these new leagues have a set of difficult challenges to complete. Players who complete five of the eight total challenges will be rewarded with an exclusive microtransaction effect. Finishing all of the eight challenges will unlock another, different, exclusive microtransaction effect. The first 50 players to complete all of the challenges will receive a Rampage/Beyond t-shirt.

Revamped Existing Content

To make for more intense and surprising battles, many of the existing boss encounters in Path of Exile have been revamped. More lore has also been added for players to discover, with snippets of Wraeclast's history scattered throughout the existing acts. Additionally, large portions of the Passive Skill Tree have been redesigned, particularly in the Witch, Shadow, and outer Ranger class areas. Extensive balance improvements supported by these changes have been made to the core game.

Further information about Path of Exile: Forsaken Masters can be found on the Path of Exile website at http://www.pathofexile.com/masters.

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New Path of Exile Expansion Unveiled

Grinding Gear Games, developer of the critically-acclaimed action RPG Path of Exile, today unveiled Path of Exile: Forsaken Masters, an entirely new and upcoming content expansion, which will arrive August 20, 2014 as a free update. Path of Exile: Forsaken Masters will introduce a slew of new and meaningful content based on the plight of the Forsaken Masters of Wraeclast -- seven men and women, masters of their trade, who were exiled by Dominus, a powerful entity of corruption and tyranny.

As per the expansion's title, players will cross paths with the seven Forsaken Masters, each offering separate and unique quests, training, mission variations, item crafting and modification options, secret and customizable towns known as Hideouts, tiers of Hideout decorations, and more in exchange for an Exile's help. Also featuring Rampage and Beyond Challenge Leagues, revamped boss fights, new lore, new Unique items, new support and skill gems, a PvP Spectator Mode, and dozens of other additions, Path of Exile: Forsaken Masters will offer players a robust augmentation to the game's already highly replayable experience.

Below is a brief synopsis of the many new features announced for Path of Exile: Forsaken Masters:

Train with the Masters

As players roam the wilderness of Wraeclast, they will sometimes encounter a Forsaken Master. All seven Masters have their own unique missions that they either need help with, or are willing to train Exiles to handle. For example, Haku asks players to cleanse an ancestral area and recover a lost Karui spirit. Vorici provides training in the art of assassination. As players progress through the eight levels of reputation with each Master, more of what these Masters can offer will be unlocked.

The seven Masters each have their own style of mission and each mission has many potential circumstances. As players delve deeper into the realm of Wraeclast, the pool of available mission variations increases, offering players new and unexpected challenges -- all of which can occur anywhere in the game.

Hideouts: Customizable Towns

In their extensive travels throughout Wraeclast, the seven Masters have discovered ideal locations for an Exile to use as their own secret Hideout. Once a Master's trust is gained, the player will be able to create their own personal and customizable town. Masters residing in a player's Hideout will offer them daily Missions and training as well as advanced crafting options. Players are also able to expand their Hideouts to use as personalized Guild Halls.

Craft and Upgrade Items

Each master specializes in crafting different types of items. As a player gains reputation with a chosen Master, they will gain access to more of that Master's unique crafting options and abilities, such as manipulating an item's sockets or crafting special modifications. Masters also function as vendors that sell items ranging from Skill Gems to Unique items. At higher levels, each Master also sells Magic items with a specific, new, build-defining modification. These can be used as-is or crafted further with either the new Hideout Crafting Benches or the traditional Orb system to create powerful items.

The expansion also includes 16 new Unique Items, some of which are exclusive and may only be found in one or the other of the new Challenge Leagues.

New Challenge Leagues: Rampage and Beyond

With the release of Path of Exile: Forsaken Masters, two new three-month Challenge Leagues will begin, providing players with an opportunity to demonstrate their mastery of Path of Exile. Like the Challenge Leagues before them, these new leagues have a set of extremely difficult challenges to complete. Players who complete five of the eight total challenges will be rewarded with an exclusive microtransaction effect. Finishing all of the eight challenges will unlock another, different, exclusive microtransaction effect. The first 50 players to complete all of the challenges will receive a Rampage/Beyond t-shirt.

Full details regarding Rampage, the upcoming standard Challenge League, and Beyond, the upcoming hardcore Challenge League, will be unveiled in news updates on the Path of Exile website on August 8 and 15 respectively.

Revamped Existing Content

To make for more intense and surprising battles, many of the existing boss encounters in Path of Exile have been revamped. More lore has also been added for players to discover, with snippets of Wraeclast's history scattered throughout the existing acts. Additionally, large portions of the Passive Skill Tree have been redesigned, particularly in the Witch, Shadow, and outer Ranger class areas. Extensive balance improvements supported by these changes have been made to the core game.

Further information about Path of Exile: Forsaken Masters can be found on the Path of Exile website at http://www.pathofexile.com/poefm.

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Issue One of Official Path of Exile Comic Series, 'The Karui Way,' Now Available

In conjunction with comic book and graphic novel publisher Dynamite Entertainment, Grinding Gear Games, developer of the critically-acclaimed action role-playing videogame Path of Exile, today announced that The Karui Way, the first issue of the official Path of Exile comic series, is now available for purchase.

The Karui Way reveals backstory from an upcoming, unannounced expansion, weaving elements from the existing in-game narrative with an entirely new and gripping conflict. Currently offered in ePub, PDF, Mobi, and CBZ (Comic Book Reader) formats, The Karui Way is available as a digital download on the Path of Exile website at www.pathofexile.com/comic, and next week via Dynamite's online storefront, Amazon.com, and Dark Horse Digital. A special bundle is also on offer, which includes the first issue as well as the exclusive Lioneye Helmet Effect and Kaom Helmet Effect -- two cosmetic in-game items not offered anywhere else.

The next three issues are scheduled to release monthly following the first issue's debut, and the entire series will ultimately be compiled as a full-color, printed graphic novel, which will be published by Dynamite in early 2015. Additionally, each issue will be available as part of an optional bundle containing an exclusive in-game bonus for players of Path of Exile, such as cosmetic armor effects, among other surprises. The standalone issues and bundles will be priced at $4.00 and $20.00 USD respectively.

In close collaboration with Grinding Gear Games' Creative Director Erik Olofsson and Narrative Designer Edwin McRae, the Path of Exile comic series is illustrated by Carlos Rodriguez and written by Royal McGraw. Carlos Rodriguez is a comic artist with published work in series such as Nightwing and Teen Titans (DC Comics), as well as in Fall of the Hulks: Red Hulk and X-Men Vs. Agents of Atlas (Marvel), among countless others. Royal McGraw is a professional writer who has penned projects for DC Comics, Syfy Channel, Electronic Arts, and other top-tier entertainment companies.

Path of Exile is an online action role-playing game set in a dark fantasy world. Playing as one of seven unique character classes, players find themselves banished for their past misdeeds to world of Wraeclast. There, they encounter hundreds of species of deadly enemies laden with loot and mysterious artifacts as they explore the abandoned continent. With over 5.5 million and counting registered users, Path of Exile has received universal critical acclaim, including 2013 Game of the Year awards from leading game sites such as GameSpot and PC PowerPlay.

More information about Path of Exile and the Path of Exile graphic novel can be found on the game's website at www.pathofexile.com.

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Path of Exile Launches in Brazil

UOL BoaCompra, the leader in emerging markets and digital goods payments in Latin America, today announced a partnership with Grinding Gear Games to bring its popular, highly acclaimed action RPG Path of Exile to gamers in Brazil.

With this partnership, UOL BoaCompra's payment methods will allow Path of Exile players in Brazil the ability make purchases in-game using their preferred payment methods. To provide even further coverage for the dark and gritty action RPG, the payments giant will also monetize the game throughout Latin America, Portugal, Spain and Turkey. The partnership grants UOL BoaCompra exclusive monetization rights for Path of Exile in Brazil and will ensure that local customer support, payment gateways, and marketing through Brazil's largest content portal, UOL, will be provided.

"We have an avid player base in Brazil, so we're excited to finally be able to deliver the full Path of Exile experience and introduce the game to a whole new audience," said Chris Wilson, Managing Director for Grinding Gear Games. "UOL BoaCompra understands the Brazilian market very well and takes an innovative approach to deliver a high quality service to the Latin American community."

"Path of Exile is one of the most exciting RPG's we've seen in a while, and their community is growing rapidly in Brazil," said Christian Borneman, Head of Global Business Development for UOL BoaCompra. "The game's features - the ability to trade, modify, build characters, and challenge one another - is a perfect fit for Brazilian gamers who strongly prefer games with unique and social strategies; we're excited to bring such an acclaimed title to our gaming community."

To celebrate the launch, Grinding Gear Games is offering an exclusive pack valued at R$89 BRL ($40 USD). The pack will be available to all Path of Exile players for one week.

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Path of Exile's Charity Race Raises Almost $20K (so far) to Benefit Child's Play

Grinding Gear Games announced today that their first charity race event has already raised almost $20,000 to benefit the Child's Play charity. The event, which started on Saturday, May 10, 2014 in the Path of Exile game, will continue to run till Saturday, May 24, 1:00 PM PST.

The exclusive item on sale for this charity event, the Angelic Mask, has sold over 3,600 units at a cost of $5.00 a piece, and is only available during the two week event. 100% of the proceeds are donated directly to the Child's Play charity.

Participants of the event will be eligible to win great in-game prizes, which include special micro-transactions as well as signed art from Path of Exile. Additionally, Grinding Gear Game's partners such as NVIDIA, Razer, and Turtle Beach have contributed an awesome array of keyboards, mice, and graphics cards that will also be awarded to participants. Grinding Gear Games will pick winners randomly from the participants whose characters reach the following levels or higher. Participants can win prizes from multiple tiers as their characters level up.

Prizes available in the random drawing include:

Level 15: 100x Stash Tab Bundles
Level 20: 100x Premium Stash Tab Bundles
Level 25: 10x Razer Mice
Level 30: 5x Razer Keyboards
Level 35: 5x NVIDIA High-performance Graphics Cards
Level 40: 8x Turtle Beach Ear Force Z SEVEN Gaming Headsets (Newly Added on May 7th!)
Level 50: 10x Sets of all Seraph Micro-transactions (Armor pieces, Wings, Weapon Effect and Footprint Effect)
Level 65: 5x Sets of Signed Prints of Original Early Concept Art
Level 85: 1x One hour private Q&A on Skype with Chris, Jonathan and Erik
In addition, the top 5 players (ranked by experience) will receive an Alternate Art Demigod's Bounty unique item.

More information about the Path of Exile 2 Week Charity Race to Benefit the Child's PlayCharity can be found at https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/915739/page/1.

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Path of Exile: Sacrifice of the Vaal Mini-Expansion is Now Live

Following the wildly successful launch of their critically-acclaimed action RPG Path of Exile, Grinding Gear Games today announced that Sacrifice of the Vaal, the game's first mini-expansion, is now live as of 1:00 PM PST (10:00 AM New Zealand time on March 6) as a free update.

Transforming Wraeclast for new and returning exiles alike, Sacrifice of the Vaalintroduces an abundance of new content that reflects the vengeful return of Queen Atziri and the corruptive influence of the Vaal civilization. Featuring dozens of secret corrupted areas, over 60 new boss monsters, Ambush and Invasion challenge leagues, Cut-throat Mode and Sarn Arena PvP options, new ultimate skill gems, a crafting item with chaotic results, and an epic encounter with Atziri herself, the mini-expansion adds a rich layer of variety to the game's already highly replayable experience. The launch of this mini-expansion also marks the first simultaneous content release with Asian Path of Exile publisher Garena Online.

Atziri, Queen of the Vaal

In her pursuit for eternal youth, the narcissistic Queen Atziri plunged the Vaal civilization into a dark age of sacrifice and terror nearly two thousand years ago. Although her selfish actions lead to the deaths of millions and ultimately destroyed her own kingdom, Atziri has lingered in a nightmare realm that now threatens Wraeclast and its inhabitants. Players must defeat her many disciples and collect Vaal fragments from corrupted areas in order to reach her lair, and will go toe-to-toe with the Queen of Sacrifice herself in a climactic end-game boss encounter.

The first 50 exiles in each of the new challenge leagues to slay Atziri and the other bosses will receive an exclusive cosmetic microtransaction effect that is limited to these 100 players.

Secret Corrupted Areas and New Boss Monsters

Marked by a beating heart and swirling ribbons of blood, secret Vaal-influenced areas have appeared in various corners of Wraeclast. Within these corrupted locations lie substantial challenges similar to those in end-game maps. At the heart of each area is a new boss monster, which guards a chest that is guaranteed to drop a Vaal Skill Gem or Vaal Fragment.

Over 60 new boss monsters have been added to Path of Exile, each of which utilize advanced combinations of skills and support gems that have never been used on monsters before. Players will need to work together to defeat these lethal foes and obtain their valuable prizes.

Vaal Skill Gems and the Vaal Orb

Brutally powerful and fueled by the sacrifice of foes, Vaal Skill Gems are the ultimate versions of many contemporary Path of Exile skills. These gems charge up as enemies are slain, and can be unleashed for a devastating effect. For example, Vaal Detonate Dead chain-explodes all the corpses in an area in rapid succession. Vaal Power Syphon fires a wand at all nearby enemies, culling them and granting power charges.

Along with Vaal Skill Gems, players can now supercharge their characters by using Vaal Orbs to give their equipment powerful modifications. Corruption yields one of many possible outcomes and has different effects depending on what type of item the Vaal Orb is used on.

New Challenge Leagues: Ambush and Invasion

Two new four-month challenge leagues are launching with Sacrifice of the Vaal, providing players with an opportunity to demonstrate their mastery of the game. Ambush and Invasion both have unique properties that set them apart from normal play:

• Ambush: The Ambush league is about risk and reward. New types of chests called Strongboxes can be found throughout the game when this challenge league is enabled. Monsters will ambush the player when the strongbox is opened, and must be slain before the contents can be claimed. The Strongboxes themselves can be crafted like items can.
• Invasion: A challenge league for Hardcore enthusiasts (characters who die are converted to Standard characters), the Invasion league features additional monster variety in each of the game's areas, forcing players to handle unexpected and dangerous monsters from other levels or acts. A unique boss monster with powerful skill combinations also lurks within each level, designed to catch the player off-guard.

Like the challenge leagues before them, these new leagues have a set of extremely difficult challenges to complete. Players who complete all the challenges will receive an exclusive t-shirt at the end of the leagues.

New PvP Options: Cut-throat Mode and Sarn Arena

Sacrifice of the Vaal enables the optional Cut-throat Mode, a league type in which players are able to invade each other's areas and kill them for their items at any time. Players have been asking for a long-term Cut-throat mode for as long as exiles have known how to cut the throats of their allies. In addition, a new free-for-all PvP area is now open for bloodshed: the Sarn Arena. Located next to the Sarn Encampment, this Arena pits more than a dozen exiles against each other in a no-holds-barred bloodbath.

Additional information about Sacrifice of the Vaal can be found on the Path of Exile website at http://www.pathofexile.com/sotv.

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