‘Valheim’ is getting a “hardcore” mode and customisable difficulty

Viking survival game Valheim will be getting a number of new difficulty modes and modifiers, a developer at Iron Gate has teased.

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The slew of difficulty options were shared by Valheim lead designer Jonathan Smårs, who posted a clip of the game’s upcoming difficulty settings in action.

In the below video, Smårs revealed six preset difficulty modifiers ranging from a Casual Mode and building-focused Hammer Mode, to a brutal Hardcore Mode that permanently removes players’ gear and skills if they die.

Are your ready for hardcore mode in #Valheim?
..or do you prefer something more chill?

Note: Actual settings are not final! @valheimgame #gamedev #indiedev #gamedevelopment pic.twitter.com/9OtOxDpkAo

— Jonathan Smårs (@jsmars) April 17, 2023

“Combat is a lot harder and monsters will raid your base more often,” reads the description for Hardcore Mode. “When you die all items you are carrying and skills are lost forever. You have no map and you may not use portals.”

At the opposite end of the spectrum, Casual Mode will include enemies that won’t fight players unless they are provoked, along with the removal of death penalties and lowered combat difficulty.

However, the future update will include a customisation menu, meaning players will be able to tweak Valheim‘s difficulty until it’s right for them. As detailed by Smårs, players will be able to tweak the likes of resource scarcity, how often their base is raided, how much they lose when they die, and whether portals or an in-game map can be used.

That being said, Smårs also noted that the settings shown were “not final,” meaning they may not arrive in Valheim exactly as they have been previewed — in fact, Smårs has already tweaked the death penalty slider based on feedback provided by fans.

A lot of feedback on the death penalty slider, so here are some more options.. better? pic.twitter.com/E939BftwiS

— Jonathan Smårs (@jsmars) April 18, 2023

Earlier in the year, Iron Gate teased the Ashlands – a new biome that will be added to Valheim in a future update.

Along with detailing plans to be more transparent, the studio shared several pieces of unsettling concept art for the enemies that will call the Ashlands home.

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