Iron Gate’s hit open-world survival game Valheim is finally coming to PS5, set to launch in 2026. Following its initial release in 2021, the Early Access title has maintained strong global popularity and a growing community, but rather than expanding its scale of development, Iron Gate has stuck to a focused team of eight developers. During Osaka Expo 2025’s Nordic Games Day, AUTOMATON Japan talked to Jonathan Smårs, lead engineer and game designer at Iron Gate, about the behind-the-scenes of Valheim.
According to Smårs, Iron Gate currently operates with 16 people, but only 8 members are dedicated to Valheim’s development. “We often get asked why we don’t hire more staff, but our team members work like close friends, and this is what lets us stay focused on making something great. I think many players appreciate that we’re sticking to the ‘good old way’ of developing and running the game, and we’ve been able to build a very healthy relationship with our community.”
When asked about the increasing number of competitor titles in the open-world survival genre, Smårs says he doesn’t see them as extra pressure. “I’m happy to see other games follow in our footsteps. If anything, I hope we can share what worked for Valheim with others. If we exchange know-how among creators, the survival-craft genre will grow as a whole, which will eventually come back around to benefit us too.”
Another reason Valheim’s developers choose not to upsize the project’s scale is to ensure their work-life balance isn’t compromised. “At Iron Gate, we actually have one-hour massages available during work hours. Beyond that, many of us go running every week, hit the gym, grab drinks at a bar, or travel to unwind during development.” When faced with inevitable delays, the developers prioritize keeping major updates on track while shifting release schedules for smaller updates.
Over the course of Valheim’s development, Smårs says the most difficult moment for his team was the sudden explosion of players after release. “Over a million players joined, and we had to be extremely careful to make sure their game files didn’t get corrupted. It was stressful, but instead of worrying too much, we decided to focus on development and just keep moving forward with our work. Success in the game industry never comes easy, but I’m proud of what Valheim has achieved.”
Valheim is currently available in Early Access for PC (Steam/Microsoft Store) and Xbox One/Xbox Series X|S, also included in Xbox/PC Game Pass. The PlayStation version is scheduled for release in 2026.
