Valheim takes notes from cozy games like Stardew Valley with an update that adds cooking and farming skills, as well as new feasts

A screenshot of Valheim's Bog Witch update, showing a player bringing food to a table.
(Image credit: Iron Gate / Coffee Stain Publishing)

Survival game Valheim is set to get significantly cozier thanks to a new update that's bringing all-new cooking and farming skills, making it feel a lot more akin to a game like Stardew Valley.

This is coming as part of 'The Bog Witch' update, which is also set to add a new vendor – the titular witch – to Valheim's swamp biome. This new face will have spices and potions aplenty on offer, as well as new materials for tools and crafting recipes. Gold can also be exchanged for ingredients usable in endurance, strength, and dexterity-enhancing Meads, Tonics, and Draughts.

That's just the start, though, as the specialized Cooking skill is where it's at for anyone wanting to step into the shoes of a humble chef. Leveling it up by cooking dishes will make preparing culinary delights an even faster process, and grant the chance of crafting additional food items at the same time. Also coming as part of these delicious additions is the arrival of eight new 'feasts' – huge banquets, each formed of ingredients from different biomes, which'll offer multiple servings of food. 

Adding to this further, the Mead Ketill and Food Preparation Table are the latest additions to Valheim's working stations, alongside two new building pieces which can be used for decoration.

Meanwhile for farming enthusiasts, the new Farming skill can be leveled up to reduce the stamina consumed by Cultivators, and give the chance of harvesting a bonus yield. On top of that, the Scythe is joining Valheim's lineup of tools – it'll make harvesting crops even faster. 

There's currently no announced release date for The Bog Witch update at the time of writing, but a press release states that it'll enter public testing "soon," so hopefully it'll be upon us before long. 

Two Valheim players spent 1,000 hours building their own RPG inside the survival game.

Catherine Lewis
News Writer

I'm one of 12DOVE's news writers, who works alongside the rest of the news team to deliver cool gaming stories that we love. After spending more hours than I can count filling The University of Sheffield's student newspaper with Pokemon and indie game content, and picking up a degree in Journalism Studies, I started my career at GAMINGbible where I worked as a journalist for over a year and a half. I then became TechRadar Gaming's news writer, where I sourced stories and wrote about all sorts of intriguing topics. In my spare time, you're sure to find me on my Nintendo Switch or PS5 playing through story-driven RPGs like Xenoblade Chronicles and Persona 5 Royal, nuzlocking old Pokemon games, or going for a Victory Royale in Fortnite.

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