Valheim exits early access with 1.0, and Iron Gate rules out a sequel

Valheim left early access on September 9 with its 1.0 update, capping a five-and-a-half-year run that turned a nine-person indie project into one of the biggest survival games in the genre. The update adds the final biome, The Deep North, two dungeons, the largest enemy Iron Gate has produced, rideable moose, and animated cutscenes including an ending sequence, giving the game a narrative close it previously lacked.

Polygon's impressions say the game still feels like the 2021 version, only deeper, and calls it one of the best survival games ever made. Iron Gate's art director Robin Eyre called the launch "the end of an era, but a start of a new age."

What comes next is more Valheim, not a sequel. Eyre said he polled the community about a Valheim 2 about a year ago and found players want more content for the existing game. "That's what we want to lean into more," he said. The team has also spun up side projects, including the co-op horror Begraved and the starship builder Starpath.