Path of Exile 2 Sets December 11, 2026 for Free-to-Play 1.0 Launch

Grinding Gear Games has set December 11, 2026 (PST) as the date Path of Exile 2 leaves Early Access and launches as a fully free-to-play 1.0 game. Depending on location, that may be December 12 locally. The release is planned for PC through Steam, the Epic Games Store, and the standalone client, as well as PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. 810

The announcement arrived during Gamescom Opening Night Live on August 25, 2026, pairing the release date with a trailer reveal for the new Duelist class. 910

What arrives with the 1.0 launch

The most concrete additions are:

• Acts 5 and 6, completing the planned six-act campaign. 38
• The Duelist, a melee-focused class built around swords and shields.
• Swords, a new weapon type for the game, with the returning Cyclone skill among the abilities shown in coverage of the reveal. 1012
• Expanded campaign, endgame, character progression, skills, and loot systems. The official PlayStation announcement describes 1.0 as a major update across those areas, although it does not provide a complete item-by-item feature list. 46

Some reports also describe a planned 1.0 structure of 12 base classes, 36 Ascendancy specializations, and more than 100 boss maps. 6 Those figures indicate the intended scale of the full release, but detailed launch information for every class, skill, item, and system has not been consistently documented across the available reporting.

Early Access ends after nearly two years

Path of Exile 2 entered paid Early Access in December 2024 on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S. Access currently requires a Founder’s Pack or another qualifying purchase; the 1.0 launch removes that entry requirement and makes the base game free to play. 215

That makes December 11 more than a conventional content update. It marks the transition from a paid public-development period to the game’s intended long-term free-to-play release, after almost two years of testing and iteration. 914

Setting and multiplayer

The game remains an action RPG set in the dark-fantasy world of Wraeclast. It supports cooperative parties of up to six players, according to the Steam listing and game reference material. 3136

The launch’s broader promise is therefore familiar to Path of Exile players: build customization through classes and Ascendancies, skill-based character development, equipment and loot progression, and an Atlas-style endgame after the campaign. The available 1.0 reports substantiate the campaign completion, Duelist, swords, and expanded endgame most clearly; they do not establish a definitive list of every planned combat or loot change.

Why the Gamescom announcement matters

Opening Night Live is the major showcase that precedes the main Gamescom expo. The roughly two-hour August 25 presentation also featured announcements and updates involving games such as The Witcher 3, a Heroes of Might and Magic III remake, Gears of War: E-Day, and METRO 2039. 3841

A December 11 release also places Path of Exile 2 in the crowded holiday gaming period. That creates obvious competition for players’ time and spending, but the available sources do not identify a definitive set of direct competitors named by Grinding Gear Games. The competitive pressure is market context rather than a specific studio claim.

For players waiting for the full game, the key takeaway is straightforward: Path of Exile 2 becomes free to play on December 11, 2026 (PST), with its final two campaign acts, the Duelist, swords, and a substantially expanded 1.0 package arriving at the same time.