Valheim, the Viking Survival Game Taking Over the Internet Explained

A Hit Right From the Start

Valheim, the popular Viking-themed open-world game, is taking the world by storm! As this goes to press, it has sold over 1 million copies in its first week. The survival games developers at Iron Gate AB reported earlier this month that Valheim had already passed 127,000 viewers on Twitch. What’s more, these video Vikings are pillaging Steam's official Top Seller list, and has garnered over 160,000 concurrent players, making Valheim the official fourth most-played game on Steam in only eight days,

What Exactly Is Valheim?

Launched at the popular PC Gaming Show last year, this survival game was inspired by the, oftentimes, brutally efficient Viking raiders’ lifestyle and mythos. Now in Early Access on Steam, the game is similar to such other games as Terraria and Conan Exiles. In this case, players are dropped into an essentially procedurally generated world loosely based on famous Norse mythology.

Players are dropped into an essentially procedurally generated world loosely based on famous Norse mythology.

In Valheim, players must scavenge for resources in order to build, craft, fight, and even sail away to survive. Players can eventually even found their own settlements. The majority of the game’s core features have already been implemented even though the game could still be considered in development. Both the single-player and multiplayer modes are fully functional.  

What Makes Valheim One Val-Helluva Game?

What really makes Valheim a standout game among all the other noteworthy survival games is its connection to the exciting Viking lifestyle and its exceptional setting which is both inviting and unforgiving. Players also especially enjoy braving the towering mountains, constructing their own rafts, and battling bloodthirsty stone golems, and other ferocious foes. But that’s not all that makes this game an early winner.  

Since Valheim’s world is procedurally generated, players are presented with new challenges every single time they play and begin to expand their personal settlement. Additionally, Valheim permits a maximum of 10 players to play at once, which allows for an exciting social interaction during a period when it would not otherwise be so significant. The gameplay is instantly engaging, and yet challenging but also encourages player creativity.

The gameplay is instantly engaging, and yet challenging but also encourages player creativity.

Similar to other exceptional survival games, Valheim also provides players with endurance tests via the use of various unexpected events and occurrences. A player may very well die again and again. Nevertheless, the game comes alive when each obstacle is overcome.  

Valheim’s Warly Victories

The positively reviewed game is currently only available on PC through Steam and tops Steam's official Top Seller list – which focuses on a game’s total revenue as opposed to quantity of sales. Valheim vanquished other well-known games like Football Manager 2021 and Nioh 2. The player stats are also further evidence of the game’s early popularity.

At its peak, Steam recorded more than 130,000 concurrent players, The game is also quickly climbing the well-known Steam player count rankings. Already it resides in the same neighbourhood as such other popular games as Rainbow Six: Siege, and Rust.  

The player stats are also further evidence of the game’s early popularity.

Valheim even attracted more players than such other strong Steam standards as Civilization VIPath of Exile, GTA V, Rocket League, and Warframe. Esports Charts shows the game averaging roughly 31,000 viewers since it was launched, reportedly parking at a total of 81,392. On Twitch, it is scoring with streamers, settling in in the top categories.

Valheim’s Future

Both critics and players alike believe the game’s continued momentum and further success would not be unexpected. This is due in part to the fact that Iron Gate has already published a promising roadmap. The developers noted that additional content will eventually be included in the game including new biomes, enemies, game modes, and more.

The developers at Iron Gate have also previously demonstrated their dedication to Valheim by announcing that the burgeoning game will remain in Early Access for another year or so because they believe that working with the gaming community directly is the very best way to garner pertinent feedback.

Valheim looks like it could very well be the next hot-hit PC game...

Despite the fact that a lot of gamers may shy away from games that are still in Early Access, the early response to Valheim has actually been noticeably positive and is expected to get even better in the future. Indeed, Valheim looks like it could very well be the next hot-hit PC survival game if its growing popularity and sales are any indication.