No, Valheim is a paid game, not free-to-play.

Is Valheim on PlayStation 5?

Yes, Valheim is available on PlayStation 5.

What platforms is Valheim on?

Valheim is available on PC, Mac, Linux, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch 2.

Yes, Valheim is available on Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One.

Valheim - Plorex

Valheim

PSLX

12Early Access

What this is

A Norse-inspired survival sandbox where expedition planning and recovery shape every adventure.

What you actually do

You gather resources, craft weapons and food, build bases, explore new areas, and fight increasingly dangerous foes. Preparation, stamina management, travel, and recovering from death make each expedition a calculated risk.

Verdict

Preparation Meets Relentless Survival

Valheim turns gathering, crafting, building, and expedition planning into a rewarding survival loop, especially with friends. Expect demanding recovery runs, awkward quality of life, and a slow flow of new content.

User reviews first

Steam recent first

Is it for you?

What shines

Beautiful atmosphere and sound design
Creative building system
Rewarding exploration and progression
Strong co-op coordination
Runs well on modest hardware

What to know

Heavy resource grind
Sharp difficulty spikes
Inconvenient storage and logistics
Janky combat interactions
Occasional crashes and lost progress

Quick facts

Genre

Open World Survival CraftBuilding

View

Third person

Solo

Co-op

up to 10

PvP

Length

82h

Entry

Standalone

Pricing

Paid

MTX

Account required

Active Support

Crossplay

+Best if

You want preparation, logistics, and base building to matter as much as combat.

!Skip it if

You dislike resource grinding, corpse recovery, and long preparation before dangerous excursions.

Developer

Iron Gate Studios

Publisher

Coffee Stain Publishing

Release

Feb 2, 2021

Game DNA

Rhythm

Mixed pace

Depth

Some depth

Mood

AtmosphericCozyChallenging

Structure

Sandbox

Also tagged

CraftingBase-BuildingExploration

topic

Your role and how it develops

Your role

You are a survivor responsible for gathering supplies, preparing for threats, building shelter, and deciding when an expedition is worth the risk.

Learning and mastery

The basic systems are approachable, but danger and preparation demands rise sharply as you explore farther.

Replay and variation

Strong for players who enjoy building new bases, exploring new worlds, and progressing through survival goals with friends.

Systems you interact with

What you actually engage with

Resource gathering

Collect materials from the procedurally generated world.

Crafting

Turn resources into tools, weapons, armor, food, and potions.

Base building

Construct and improve shelters with practical and creative layouts.

Exploration

Travel across varied regions by foot and sea while searching for resources and threats.

Survival preparation

Manage food, stamina, equipment, weather, and travel plans before leaving safety.

Combat

Fight dangerous creatures with timing, positioning, and suitable equipment.

Cooperative play

Coordinate gathering, construction, travel, and combat with other players.

topic

Time investment

How long it takes

HowLongToBeat

Main story

focused run

82h

Main + extras

story and side content

105h

Completionist

full clear

148h

Session fit

What the time commitment feels like

When it clicks

You can quickly gather, craft basic equipment, and establish a small shelter.

Session constraints

A short session can be consumed by gathering, sailing, inventory management, or recovering a lost body.

Best session rhythm

It works best in planned sessions that alternate between base work, preparation, travel, and recovery.

DLC timing

Additional content is best considered after the core survival and building loop already appeals to you.

topic

Review interpretation

Current mood

Players remain enthusiastic about Valheim's atmosphere, building, and satisfying survival loop, though its difficulty and preparation demands are part of the appeal.

Why it works

Valheim combines expressive building, exploration, preparation-driven survival, and strong solo or cooperative play with a memorable world and atmosphere.

Critic gap

Critics praised Valheim's refined survival systems and rewarding world, while players also point to slow development, grind, and persistent quality-of-life frustrations.

What players value

Building and creative expression

high

Players repeatedly highlight building as a lasting source of creativity and satisfaction.

Atmosphere, art, and sound

high

The world, visuals, music, and sound design are frequently praised for creating a distinctive, soothing atmosphere.

Exploration and progression

high

Players enjoy discovering new areas, preparing for tougher challenges, and advancing through a compelling survival loop.

Evidence-backed risks

Slow development and limited new content

highreviews and critics

Players frequently criticize the pace of updates and the amount of new content delivered during Early Access.

Heavy preparation, grind, and punishing difficulty

mediumreviews

Some players find progression demanding, with extensive preparation, resource gathering, and severe consequences for mistakes.

Quality-of-life and storage frustrations

mediumreviews

Players report inconvenient storage, limited inventory convenience, and other long-standing quality-of-life issues.

topic

Minimum PC

Playable baseline

OSWindows 10 or later

CPU2.6 GHz Quad Core or similar

RAM8 GB RAM

GPUGeForce GTX 950 or Radeon HD 7970

Recommended PC

Better target

OSWindows 10 or later

CPUi5 3GHz or Ryzen 5 3GHz

RAM16 GB RAM

GPUGeForce GTX 1060 or Radeon RX 580

Storage and usability

Disk, language and input

Install1 GB

Download1 GB

Free space1 GB

Languages14 listed

ControllerFull

Accessibility

Verified Steam support

Camera comfort optionsSteam

Custom volume controlsSteam

Adjustable difficultySteam

topic

Support status

Developer activity

Actively updated

Last game updateMay 6, 2026 · 3 months ago

Last official postJun 24, 2026 · 28 days ago

Updates (12 mo)4

Posts (12 mo)15

CadenceFrequent

SourceSteam

Official Steam news

Latest from the developer

topic

Questions people search

answered from verified data

The main story of Valheim takes about 82 hours to beat.

Expect around 105 hours with side content and about 148 hours for completionists (HowLongToBeat player data).