The new survival game Valheim (PC) is becoming a Steam hit thanks to high player numbers and very good reviews. The title is so well-received that it has even surpassed the survival giant ARK: Survival Evolved.
What is Valheim: The new survival game Valheim focuses on co-op rather than PvP and places you in a randomly generated game world where you, as a Viking, must fight the enemies of Odin. You start with nothing, which is typical for a survival game, and you must craft equipment and weapons from resources.
You can team up with up to nine other players to defeat the monsters and bosses in the world of Valheim together. You can build ships to reach islands and also construct buildings as a refuge and for defense. Essentially, it is a classic survival game, but with a Viking scenario and a focus on co-op gameplay. The trailer gives you a glimpse of the game:
Valheim Excites Steam Players
This is how Valheim is performing on Steam: The Steamcharts show (as of February 8 at 12 PM) a peak of 130,370 concurrent players. The ratings on Steam are at 96%.
Thus, Valheim has even managed to surpass the successful and popular survival game ARK. In the past 30 days, the peak player count for ARK was only “just” at 89,428 concurrent players (via Steamcharts). And the ratings on Steam are currently at 90%.
However, Valheim is still not catching up to the survival trend hit Rust. Rust currently has 244,394 players at its peak (via Steamcharts). Nevertheless, the success of the new Viking survival game with over 130,000 players shows that there is a chance to possibly catch up with Rust.
Although Valheim is still an Early Access title and the developers already have a whole range of new features planned, the survival game is already receiving very good feedback. This is partly due to the fact that the elements that are currently playable feel good and are fun.
Here are some positive reviews:
- KENTOBi writes (via Steam): ‘A really beautiful, atmospheric survival game that provides a lot of fun both in co-op with friends and solo. Overall a great Early Access game that is already worth buying, but it can still get better.’
- Cliffy says (via Steam): ‘Finally a survival game that is sometimes challenging but never too hard. You can take your time or play quickly, provided you know what to do. Co-op works great, just like solo play.’
- Jerry explains (via Steam): ‘I had so much fun playing and I’m looking forward to many more hours and updates, as this has been the only game that has united our entire Discord channel in one game. Everyone found something to enjoy in this game, whether they like Vikings chopping down entire forests, living in a lonely forest hut, exploring a huge world, or fighting moose on crack.’
- Straw Hat Adi is totally thrilled (via Steam): ‘Every day I consider quitting my job so I can play longer. Friends are no longer greeted with ‘Let’s play’ but only with a blunt: ‘Grinding?’ We are now in-game at day 60 plus and have no time to learn about the third boss since we are all just building. What I want to say is? Why are you wasting your time reading my comment? Buy the game!’
The few negative reviews on Steam criticize the graphics, which have a unique so-called “low-poly” style. Additionally, Valheim is said to be quite grind-heavy and there are still some technical issues here and there, for example, with hit detection in battles.
Here are some negative reviews:
- Robulus Maximus says (via Steam): ‘Dude, this game is soooo weird. I don’t know… it doesn’t feel well-rounded. It has strange hitboxes, the spear has a ridiculous range, the first few hours it’s just a hunting grind… If you compare the game to Skyrim, Minecraft, or Terraria, it simply doesn’t hold up.’
- Unpairedelectron01 writes (via Steam): ‘This game could be fun if you like games that look like they were developed in 1995. Absolutely terrible graphics. You move in third-person but it always takes ages to do something. Very grindy and some of the monsters can kill you with one hit.’
- Merican Zealot would probably prefer a solo game (via Steam): ‘Valheim could be fun. But solo, everything stretches out so much and it has the same repetitive start as every other survival game. There isn’t enough to do, and you have no personal goals or friends to go on an adventure with. The first days are all about grinding and that’s a no-go. It could be good, just not when playing alone.’
This is how you play: You can get Valheim in the early access version via Steam. It costs 16.79 Euros.
Have you also had the opportunity to check out Valheim? What do you think of the game?
If you enjoy survival games, then check out MeinMMO’s list of the 25 best survival games of 2021 for PlayStation, Xbox, and PC.
