Skip to main content
News

Valheim: A Call to Arms brings new enemies, gear, and enhanced combat

The developers teased a smaller update earlier this year, and now it has finally been revealed at Gamescom and launched on the Public Test Realm.
Marcus Persson 20 August 2025

Valheim players are used to waiting — often far too long. But this time, the summer break is over and so is the silence from Iron Gate. A Call to Arms, the latest Valheim update, brings with it a wave of fresh content and adjustments that are bound to excite adventuring Vikings. Among the highlights are rebalanced Forsaken Powers, two brand-new enemies, eight new crafting materials, new weapons and armor sets, additional building pieces, plus new hair and beard styles. Combat has also been fine-tuned to make battles feel more dynamic and responsive.

As if that wasn't enough, the update also introduces a brand-new area to explore, expanding the world of Valheim even further. To test the patch: open Valheim in Steam > Properties > Betas > enter the code yesimadebackups. For Xbox/PC Game Pass, it's available via the Xbox Insider Hub. And don't forget: always back up your save files. The full changelog (with and without spoilers) is available on Valheim's official site.

Full profile 2,499 published articles
Why trust Gamereactor
23 Editions Each with its own newsroom and its own scores.
1998 Publishing since Independently owned for the whole of it.
100% Hands-on Written from time with the game, never press material.
1–10 Network Score Every edition’s score, averaged and shown.