How important is light in a video game? The Valheim case

The evocative light of the forests, glades and fjords of Northern Europe is one of the factors that have contributed to the huge success of the independent video game Valheim. In this game, players become Vikings who have to demonstrate their ability to survive in a hostile environment and prove themselves fit to sit at Odin’s side in the legendary halls of the Norse folk’s Valhalla. This is the first game released by the small independent Swedish developer, Iron Gate Studio, and in the first months of 2021 it surprised sector analysts and critics by rapidly selling over 5 million copies and becoming the second most-played game on the Steam platform. This is a particularly remarkable result considering that the game is only currently available in “early access”: a version that is similar to the definitive game, but which still lacks certain finishes and adjustments that will give it game-perfect status.
 

The slightly “rough” rendering of objects with angular shapes, especially when viewed close-up, are reminiscent of the video games produced ten or fifteen years ago, but the atmospheres and interplay of light and shadow have been extremely popular and helped to distract the public’s attention from the imperfections in the graphics. While the game was being developed, the Iron Gate Studio CEO, Richard Svensson, tweeted on Twitter that he was more interested in composition and lighting than texture quality and polygon count. He attached several images to the tweet that offered previews of the quality of the landscapes in the game.
 

The sun rises every morning on the world of Valheim, and every evening it disappears behind the mountains. The sky changes colour according to the time of day, shadows grow and shrink, bodies of water reflect the dazzling white light of midday or a romantic red band at sunset. It is no coincidence that various users have built sundials. At night the moon and stars shine. Clouds cross the sky, and fogs and mists rise from the ground or stretches of water to accentuate the changing atmospheres. A range of different weather conditions also alternate during the course of the day.

Many players have recounted their experiences on social forums and platforms. On Reddit, TipYourSupport described with real excitement the voyage across the ocean he made with his band of characters. “There’s a million things to say about this game”, he wrote: “the way the boats rock while docked in choppy weather. Tide behaviour, storm behaviour[...] I’m so excited and this is only early access.”

His band of Vikings sailed to an unknown continent beyond the horizon with a river cutting straight through it, so they sailed along that, too. TipYourSupport continues by saying:

[Cercavo] di tenere la barca nel mezzo del fiumiciattolo avvolto dalla nebbia, mentre i miei amici tiravano frecce dalla barca verso riva per difenderci dall’arrivo di nemici appena visibili. Da molto tempo non provavo così tanto entusiasmo per un’esplorazione in compagnia dei miei amici. Era inquietante ed emozionante; tutti i dettagli dei cambiamenti meteorologici sono stati curati in modo spettacolare!

Given the historical context, artificial lighting is limited to campfires, hearths and flaming torches, which give off a different light depending on the type of fuel used: yellow if birch resin is burnt or greenish if guck is used, a kind of slime found on the trees that grow near swamps.

Lastly, with a stroke of genius, some players have even decided to use the bioluminescence of a certain kind of mushroom as a source of light. Some less ambitious players have used one or two to make up for the lack of a night light, while others have collected enough to light an entire room.