Grinding Gear Games today announced the third season of race events for their online action RPG, Path of Exile. With it comes a challenging new Signature Event–the Descent league. Race events are short-term leagues separate from the main game with separate characters and varying goals that test the player’s skill and luck. Season Three commences on Saturday, June 29th and will feature approximately fifty Descent events over the course of the following six weeks.
Offering a completely new scenario from the core Path of Exile plot, the Descent league places players at the outskirts of the Phrecian Forest with the objective to search out and explore a forgotten cathedral. As participants descend into its depths and explore its vast dungeons, they will encounter various combinations of monsters and bosses from all areas of the game.
Concluding each Descent level is a pair of special chests, which contain distinct sets of predetermined items to help players specialize their character builds. However, only one chest may be chosen per level, and choices made can drastically alter how the event is played.
Adding to the intensity, there is no town to return to in Descent league, and no waypoints nor portals for travel. Flask charges will only be restored by slaying monsters or leveling up. Furthermore, the Descent events are a 100% solo experience. Players will spawn and perish alone in their quest.
“Allowing players to replay the same event every few days is really interesting from a game design point of view,” said Chris Wilson, Path of Exile’s lead designer. “We expect that as players work out the best ways to build characters to handle the challenge we’ve constructed, they’ll get deeper and deeper into the cathedral.”
Grinding Gear Games will keep track of players who have reached the highest levels with each character class over Race Season Three and award them with prizes. Characters and their items will be permanently destroyed once a Descent event ends to preserve the integrity of the regular Path of Exile community.
Further information about Race Season Three and Descent events can be found on Path of Exile’s website.