Path of Exile 2 Smashes 421K on Steam, Then the Bugs Hit

421,596 concurrent players on Steam alone. That's where Path of Exile 2 peaked over the weekend following the launch of its Return of the Ancients update, according to SteamDB, the game's best numbers since early access began. A free weekend and a massive endgame overhaul brought players flooding back. And then the crash reports started.

As I covered in my earlier piece on the player surge, the 0.5 update is the biggest content drop Grinding Gear Games has shipped for PoE 2, with six new endgame storylines, new Ascendancy Classes, Pinnacle Bosses, and a completely reworked Atlas. Players on Reddit have been calling it "the buggiest league start i ever had," with reports ranging from quest-blocking bugs and immortal enemies in the Vaal Ruins to frequent crashes to desktop. Content creator Talkative Tri summarised the community mood as this being "the buggiest Path of Exile 2 and Path of Exile release of all time, especially in the endgame."

Grinding Gear Games acknowledged the problems in a forum post, noting that "while the launch was relatively stable and we've already deployed a number of fixes, there are still some issues we're working to resolve as quickly as possible." Specific targets include a progression blocker in the Rite of the Nameless questline, Jado's quest, controller issues with passive skill allocation, and a bug preventing item filter sounds from playing. A hotfix has already addressed Waystone sustain concerns and some endgame progression issues, but players are pointing out that plenty more bugs remain untouched.

This is the tension that comes with shipping your biggest update during a free weekend to maximize exposure. GGG got the numbers they wanted, and I don't doubt the underlying update is strong, but first impressions matter enormously when you're trying to convert free weekend players into long-term ones. Crashes and broken quests during someone's first few hours aren't the kind of thing they shrug off. GGG has earned a reputation for transparent communication and fast fixes, and they'll need both right now.