TLDR: if you want a more pve focused game, with surprisingly pretty visuals and good exploration, give this a try. But please do so with friends, not solo, its a 100x better experience.

Overall, if youve played an open world survival/crafting game, then you have an idea of whether youll like Valheim or not. If you never have, or if all youve played were ones like Rust which are mainly pvp(fighting other players) oriented, then I highly highly recommend you give it a try as pve(fighting monsters and bosses/exploring the environment) is the focus of this game. Its quite a different take

Compared to other open world survival games, what it adds to the mix is an elder scrolls/runescape style of leveling, where the more you do something, the better at it you get.

It also adds in a sense of exploration that none of these other games has given me. You cant really compare sailing around on a ship in this game to any of the other ones Ive played. Take sea of thieves style sailing and make it a little less complicated, and you have what Valheim uses. Its easy to learn, intuitive, and fun to use.

Combat is also fairly simple once you learn it, but the simplicity doesnt make it boring, it makes it rewarding to get the hang of. Also, the world does truly feel dangerous and intimidating. Each new, harder biome that you enter really feels like a test, but once youve geared up, you get a feeling of mastering it. One of the members of my community and I just yesterday were commenting on how the Black Forest feels like home now, and "safe", whereas when you are first starting out its a terrifying place where its very easy to die. Its all about learning the dangers of each, and simply getting your character strong enough to no longer feel threatened.

Some people complain about boss fights, but with proper preparation/gear, and learning the bosses mechanics, theyre fairly simple but fun to beat(bosses are the key to progressing into new biomes, and being able to acquire new/better gear).

The building mechanics in the game are also simple to learn, yet complicated to master. Check out a few screen shots of mine, or of some of the builds in the community hub and youll see what I mean. To be fair at least half of my time in the game is from farming/building our main fortresses, as I enjoy building and design in games like these.

The game looks underwhelming in some of the SS pics you see, but dont let that fool you. Some of the visuals you get thanks to the fantastic lighting in this game can be nothing short of breathtaking.

Overall, this game is fantastic, and plays best when youre playing with a group. The only downside is the speed at which they are currently updating it(very slowly). That said, at 20$ its more than worth the price for the amount of content currently available, and even if you try to play through the first time as fast as possible, it will probably take you at least 30 hours.

Just remember, theres a reason its one of the highest reviewed games on stream of all time.


Edit: I still think the game is worth the price. It has enough content to justify it.

That said, the devs absolutely suck. They overpromise things, censor ANYTHING that criticizes them(a LOT of deleted/locked topics in their forums when people question them), and put out very few updates. The ONLY major update since its release 2 years ago just came out, after they promised 4 within the first year.

If youre ok with the negatives stated above, the game is fun.

Otherwise if you dont like to support ♥♥♥♥♥♥ devs, Id recommend looking elesewhere, especially at something like 7 Days To Die. Almost 10 years and theyre still doing constant updates to a great game.

TLDR: if you want a more pve focused game, with surprisingly pretty visuals and good exploration, give this a try. But please do so with friends, not solo, its a 100x better experience. Overall, if youve played an open world survival/crafting game, then you have an idea of whether youll like Valheim or not. If you never have, or if all youve played were ones like Rust which are mainly pvp(fighting other players) oriented, then I highly highly recommend you give it a try as pve(fighting monsters and bosses/exploring the environment) is the focus of this game. Its quite a different take Compared to other open world survival games, what it adds to the mix is an elder scrolls/runescape style of leveling, where the more you do something, the better at it you get. It also adds in a sense of exploration that none of these other games has given me. You cant really compare sailing around on a ship in this game to any of the other ones Ive played. Take sea of thieves style sailing and make it a little less complicated, and you have what Valheim uses. Its easy to learn, intuitive, and fun to use. Combat is also fairly simple once you learn it, but the simplicity doesnt make it boring, it makes it rewarding to get the hang of. Also, the world does truly feel dangerous and intimidating. Each new, harder biome that you enter really feels like a test, but once youve geared up, you get a feeling of mastering it. One of the members of my community and I just yesterday were commenting on how the Black Forest feels like home now, and "safe", whereas when you are first starting out its a terrifying place where its very easy to die. Its all about learning the dangers of each, and simply getting your character strong enough to no longer feel threatened. Some people complain about boss fights, but with proper preparation/gear, and learning the bosses mechanics, theyre fairly simple but fun to beat(bosses are the key to progressing into new biomes, and being able to acquire new/better gear). The building mechanics in the game are also simple to learn, yet complicated to master. Check out a few screen shots of mine, or of some of the builds in the community hub and youll see what I mean. To be fair at least half of my time in the game is from farming/building our main fortresses, as I enjoy building and design in games like these. The game looks underwhelming in some of the SS pics you see, but dont let that fool you. Some of the visuals you get thanks to the fantastic lighting in this game can be nothing short of breathtaking. Overall, this game is fantastic, and plays best when youre playing with a group. The only downside is the speed at which they are currently updating it(very slowly). That said, at 20$ its more than worth the price for the amount of content currently available, and even if you try to play through the first time as fast as possible, it will probably take you at least 30 hours. Just remember, theres a reason its one of the highest reviewed games on stream of all time. Edit: I still think the game is worth the price. It has enough content to justify it. That said, the devs absolutely suck. They overpromise things, censor ANYTHING that criticizes them(a LOT of deleted/locked topics in their forums when people question them), and put out very few updates. The ONLY major update since its release 2 years ago just came out, after they promised 4 within the first year. If youre ok with the negatives stated above, the game is fun. Otherwise if you dont like to support shitty devs, Id recommend looking elesewhere, especially at something like 7 Days To Die. Almost 10 years and theyre still doing constant updates to a great game.