Path of Exile 2 Season 3 has crept up on me somewhat. There are so many excellent ARPGs on the calendar nowadays, from the reliable heavy hitters like Diablo 4 and PoE to strong indie challengers such as The Slormancer and Hell Clock. I’ve just started playing the newly released Titan Quest 2, and I’m having a blast, but now Grinding Gear Games has reignited the flames of anticipation as it prepares to launch the next PoE 2 update. A new, cryptic image has sent the community into speculation mode, and could well hint at the arrival of the fourth act of the Path of Exile 2 campaign.
The Path of Exile 2 developer suddenly dropped a mysterious image onto social media that, to avoid any potential confusion with the first game’s ongoing PoE 3.26 league, is emblazoned with the PoE 2 logo. It shows a message that GGG says was “Recovered from a long-buried library in the ruins of Oriath, with a note that reads: ‘The symbols are of an unknown language. Deciphering it may be possible, but it will take time… Time I no longer have…'” With the next Path of Exile 2 season set to launch on Friday August 29, it seems all but certain that this relates to what we’ll find in the update, but what does it mean?
Path of Exile 2 has the fundamentals to become one of the best RPGs of all time, but first GGG needs to finish off its campaign. The initial three acts are truly excellent, and perhaps the strongest start to any ARPG I’ve ever experienced, but you’re currently forced to replay them at a harder difficulty before you can get into the endgame, and it’s a bit of a dampener on the pacing. I’m certainly eager for the ‘real’ acts four through six to arrive, and we might finally be getting at least some of that second half soon.
It seems likely that this new image relates to at least the fourth act, but it could go further. The creator of the most popular Path of Exile 2 loot filter, ‘Neversink,’ has a hypothesis that it’s a stealthy act four announcement, and they’re “95% sure” about it. “These seem to be precursors to Kalguur runes. Very similar in shapes and forms. Kalguur people have this infamous, seemingly immortal ‘King’ figure and they’re mentioned here.”
With a caution of potential spoilers, the Path of Exile 2 art book suggests that the game’s fourth act will take place in the Karui Archipelago and the Kalguuran town of Kingsmarch (the same one we recently built in PoE 1), and Neversink notes that the ‘well’ mentioned in the image could relate to the Karui ‘well of souls.’ Even more interestingly, that same book places act five in Oriath, which is supposedly where this message was found. You can take a look at the details courtesy of ‘Robsafari’ below, if you’re interested.
The Path of Exile Reddit community has also been studying the image, and some of them point to another possible clue – the first line of symbols, which, if you squint enough, looks a bit like the word ‘Druid.’ One of the most-anticipated Path of Exile 2 classes, the Druid has to be a high-priority candidate to arrive in Season 3. Back before launch, game director Jonathan Rogers told me it was the absentee that bothered him the most; “There’s a huge number of people waiting for that class, and we will definitely get that one out as soon as we can.”
Path of Exile 2 Season 3 will launch on Friday August 29 alongside update 0.3.0. Until then, you’ll find me touching up my best PoE 2 builds, as well as desperately connecting red threads between various images and hastily scribbled notes that I’ve pinned to a cork board.
If you’d rather do something slightly more productive, here are the best games like Diablo to play in 2025, along with our pick for the best gaming keyboard to ensure that whatever you choose feels as good as possible.
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