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Path of Exile: The Fall of Oriath Reviews: What Critics Said

The Fall of Oriath added six acts and the Pantheon system. Game Informer praised its depth on Xbox One but flagged the learning curve and interface friction.
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The Fall of Oriath expanded Path of Exile with six campaign acts and the Pantheon system. The available professional review evidence is narrower than the title might suggest: Game Informer’s Jeff Cork reviewed the Xbox One version, awarding it 9.5/10. He praised its depth and build variety while noting a steep learning curve and some control and inventory frustrations. That is a strong single-platform review, not proof of a broad critical consensus.

What The Fall of Oriath added

Grinding Gear Games described the 2017 expansion as adding Acts Five through Ten, taking the campaign to ten acts. Acts Six through Ten make up its second campaign part, moving players through new and familiar Wraeclast locations and into encounters with returning gods. The expansion also introduced the Pantheon system, which provides defensive bonuses associated with gods; players can swap those powers in town at no cost. Grinding Gear Games’ feature overview also lists new skill and support gems, unique items, a water renderer, environment and minimap improvements, and performance work. Those performance changes are developer-described features, not independent benchmark results.

How the Xbox One version was reviewed

Game Informer’s Jeff Cork gave the Xbox One release 9.5/10 in a review published September 20, 2017. He praised the amount of content, the range of possible character builds, and how well the controller generally worked. His reservations were precise targeting that could feel clunky, inventory management that became a chore, and a demanding learning curve. Cork’s overall view was that the game rewards players willing to learn its systems: “Players who invest the time to negotiate Path of Exile’s steep learning curve are in for an incredibly satisfying and rewarding action/RPG.” Read Cork’s Xbox One review at Game Informer.

Why the campaign change mattered

Cork highlighted a major progression change: The Fall of Oriath removed the previous requirement to replay the campaign multiple times at increasing difficulties. He considered that an improvement, but wished that second characters had an adventure-mode-style alternative to repeating the lengthy campaign. That distinction matters for players deciding whether the expansion’s added acts are simply more story or also part of a changed route through character progression.

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Release dates by platform

Platform Date Source and context
PC August 4, 2017 Grinding Gear Games scheduled the launch alongside the Harbinger Challenge League in its July 20 announcement: official announcement.
Xbox One August 24, 2017 Release date listed by Game Informer, whose review specifically covers the Xbox One version: review and listing.

Is The Fall of Oriath worth playing?

Cork’s review makes a persuasive case for players who enjoy deep character-building and are willing to spend time learning an intricate action RPG. The content and build variety were major strengths in his assessment. Players who want immediate clarity, precise target selection with a controller, or painless inventory handling should weigh his criticisms too. This judgment is specific to his Xbox One review; the evidence here does not establish how critics assessed every platform.

What the available review scores do—and do not—show

There is not enough professional-review evidence here to call The Fall of Oriath a critical consensus success or failure. The documented professional assessment is Cork’s single Xbox One review, so it should not be generalized to PC or other platforms.

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Metacritic displayed a 6.5 user score at the time of access, alongside 43 positive, 8 mixed, and 22 negative user ratings. These are mutable aggregator figures from reviews posted at different times, not a fixed launch-era sample or a professional critic score. Metacritic’s Fall of Oriath page provides that user-rating context.

Steam’s official listing showed a Very Positive English-language aggregate for the base game, not an expansion-specific critic rating. It is broad context about the continuing game and should not be treated as a review score for The Fall of Oriath. Steam’s Path of Exile listing.

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What new players should expect

The Xbox One review’s steep-learning-curve warning is particularly relevant to newcomers. The campaign’s expanded length and the game’s build variety offer a great deal to learn; Cork’s assessment suggests that the payoff comes with investment rather than instant accessibility. His comments about targeting and inventory are specific to the controller experience he reviewed, so they should not be assumed to describe PC controls.

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