Path of Exile 2's first free weekend lets you check out everything the ARPG has to offer for the low, low price of nothing

Path of Exile 2 screenshot from the opening cinematic trailer, showing someone stood surrounded by flames. — (Image credit: Grinding Gear Games)

Path of Exile 2 is getting its first free weekend from Friday, August 29 to Monday, September 1.

The free weekend extends to all players on all platforms, and is part of developer Grinding Gear Games' promotion of Path of Exile 2's massive upcoming update, The Third Edict.

Better yet, there are virtually no restrictions in the free weekend; you'll be able to play as any class, access all content including all updates, and level up as much as you want. Your characters, all progress, and all potential in-game purchases, "will be patiently waiting for you" in your account should you decide to buy an early access key or wait for the game's full release, which will be free to play.

The Third Edict is launching the same day as the free weekend and includes a genuinely staggering amount of new stuff and changes. According to the patch notes, there's a whole new Act that'll add 16 new areas to pillage and 12 new bosses to test your mettle. Then, there will be three new Interlude Acts with 19 new areas and 12 new bosses, and a new season called Rise of the Abyssal that'll introduce a new crafting system and four more new bosses.

Another major change coming with The Third Edict is the removal of the second playthrough currently required to reach the endgame. Instead, you'll have the three new mini Acts following Act 4 and acting as one big bridge between the end of the main story and the endgame. As someone who simply can't be bothered to finish the vast majority of campaigns twice, that just might be the change GGG needed to implement to get me to come back, which I'm sure is the one and only reason they're doing it.