## What changed
- **World save system** — completely redesigned to use folder-based storage with chunked files instead of single .db and .fwl files
- **Modified chunk saving** — only chunks that have been changed are saved, reducing save times and file sizes
- **Character saves** — remain unchanged and unaffected by the new system
- **Backup storage** — now stored in separate folders instead of alongside world files
- **Save validation** — the system performs extra checks after saving to verify data integrity and reduce corruption risk
- **Legacy world conversion** — when loading old non-chunked worlds, an automatic backup is created first to prevent data loss during conversion
## Bug Fixes
- **Corrupt save prevention** — additional verification checks catch save errors before they cause data loss
- **Safe world migration** — legacy worlds are backed up before chunking to protect against potential new bugs
## New Limitations
- **Cloud storage file limits** — some platforms now restrict the number of files that can be saved, which conflicts with the new chunked system creating significantly more files than before
## Overall
Valheim's world saves are now chunked and folder-based for better performance, but this creates more individual files that may exceed cloud storage limits on some platforms.
Introducing a new world save system
The new save system only affects world saves, character saves remain the same.
When saving, only the chunks that have been modified are saved.
Instead of saving a world with the .db and .fwl files it’s now stored in folders and the world (.db) is split up in multiple files (chunks).
Backups are stored in separate folders.
When loading a world that is not chunked, a backup is made first so no data is lost in case of potential new bugs.
The save system performs extra checks after saving to make sure it saved properly, which reduces the risk of a corrupt save.
There is a new limitation in cloud storage, up until now it was only the total size of all saves. Some platforms have a limit in how many files can be saved, this was previously not a limitation but now there will be way more files saved.
## What changed
- **Radial menu emote selection** — you can now hold down the radial menu button and release to select an emote instead of clicking
- **Gamepad crouch** — reverted to single button press instead of press-and-hold
## Bug Fixes
- **Windowed mode resolution settings** — fixed erratic behavior when adjusting display settings
- **Vulkan startup crash** — fixed crash on Windows startup under specific conditions with Vulkan renderer
- **Ashlands audio** — eliminated stuttering in the Ashlands biome
- **Graphics settings application** — fixed settings sometimes not applying correctly after updating from older versions
- **Graphics menu UX** — fixed minor interface issues
- **Mod compatibility crash** — fixed null reference exception in version 0.221.10 when mods accessed preferences at startup through localization or other systems
## Overall
This patch adds quality-of-life improvements to the emote system and gamepad controls while addressing stability issues with graphics settings, audio performance, and mod compatibility.
Added release-to-select in the radial menu: If you continue holding down the radial menu button/key after the radial menu appears, you can select an emote by releasing the button/key.
Reverted crouching being unintentionally changed to a press-and-hold action on gamepad. Now it’s back to being a single press again.
Fixed annoying resolution setting behavior in windowed mode when changing settings.
Fixed crash on startup on Windows that triggers under specific conditions when using Vulkan.
Fixed audio stutters in Ashlands.
Fixed sometimes not being able to apply graphics settings properly the first time after updating from an earlier version.
Fixed some minor UX issues in the graphics settings menu.
Fixed a null reference exception that started happening in 0.221.10 when mods directly or indirectly accessed preferences at startup (for example via the localization system).
## What changed
- **Radial menu for emotes** — added for easier emote access
- **Flower Garland** — new buildable decoration piece
- **Fey Lights** — new buildable decoration piece
- **Frosted Sweetbread** — new consumable item
- **Early Axes** — new weapon type
- **Celebratory Cap** — new hat
- **Mysterious Axe Head and Curious Axe Head** — two new crafting materials
- **Hairstyles** — tweaked Castellan, Painter Curls, Pulled Back Curls, and Tidy Curls
- **Berserker Armor** — adjusted appearance
- **Game Engine** — upgraded to Unity 6000.0.61f1
## Balance
- **Carapace Buckler** — now grants 5 adrenaline on perfect block instead of 10, matching other shields
## Graphics and Performance
- **3D resolution limit setting** — replaced percentage-based "Render scale" slider with fixed resolution dropdown options
- **Upscaling method** — added new setting with "Pixelated" option
- **SSAO quality** — added "Low" option for significant performance improvement while maintaining similar appearance
- **Frame rate limiter** — now works alongside v-sync and applies during splash/loading screens
- **Armor stands** — massively reduced CPU usage
- **Shield dome and heat distortion effects** — removed unnecessary GPU texture copies when effects aren't active
- **Grass in reflections** — removed from environment reflections to improve performance
- **Minimap memory usage** — reduced
- **Graphics presets** — only load for current platform instead of all platforms
- **Yggdrasil
Added a radial menu for emotes
2 new buildable garlands
Engine Upgrade
Multiple bug fixes and improvements
New Buildpiece: Flower Garland
New Buildpiece: Fey Lights
New Consumable: Frosted Sweetbread
New Weapon: Early Axes
New Hat: Celebratory Cap
2 New Materials: Mysterious Axe Head, Curious Axe Head
Added radial menu for emotes
Tweaks to multiple hairstyles (Castellan, Painter Curls, Pulled Back Curls, Tidy Curls)
Tweaks to berserker armour
Carapace Buckler now provides 5 adrenaline instead of 10 on perfect block, just like other shields
Updated Game Engine to Unity 6000.0.61f1
Added localization string for tombstone container
Replaced “Render scale” percentage slider with “3D resolution limit” dropdown with fixed resolutions – improves use case as performance target
Added new “Upscaling method” setting with new “Pixelated” option
Added new “Low” SSAO quality option, which achieves a similar look to the existing SSAO quality (now named “High”) with a significantly lower performance impact
The frame rate limiter can now be used together with v-sync (chooses the lowest submultiple of the monitor refresh rate that is greater than or equal to the selected value)
The frame rate limiter setting is now applied during the splash/loading screen
The resolution dropdown setting now sorts resolutions from highest to lowest, instead of the other way around
Change engine settings to improve performance in areas with many instances
Massively reduced CPU usage of armor stands
Skip texture copy for image effects (shield dome and heat distortion) when those effects aren’t being used, which should reduce GPU overhead in most areas
Grass vegetation is no longer included in environment reflections, improving performance
Ensure one-shot sound effects are started the same frame they’re created, reducing their latency by up to one frame
Reduced memory usage of minimap
Only load graphics presets for the current platform, rather than all platforms, reducing memory usage
Removed a duplicated matchmaking manager that wasted performance in the start menu
Fixed “Generating” progress bar not always being shown during world generation
Fixed server list sometimes failing to save when quitting from the start menu
Fixed crash that could occur in multiplayer when a T.W.I.G. throws a rock at a player who is at the edge of a shield dome
Fixed crash that happened when hovering the cursor over a bee hive without being the network owner of that bee hive
Fixed audio stutter that occurred when a lot of sounds were playing simultaneously
Fixed Yggdrasil not being visible in environment reflections
Improved error message shown when trying to play online without being logged in to Game Center
Player list now successfully shows profile pictures of non-friends too
All settings are now stored per-user and synchronized to the cloud, rather than being shared between all users on the console
UI is now rendered at native resolution (up to 4K) on Xbox Series S|X and Xbox One X
Improved graphics:
Xbox One and Xbox One S: Added SSAO and increased number of point lights
Xbox One X: Increased number of point lights
Xbox Series S: Increased number of point lights and enabled point light shadows
Xbox Series X: Increased number of point lights, enabled point light shadows and adjusted resolutions
Reduce power draw even more when the game is running in the background
Reworked graphics presets and unified them across the three platforms
Fixed automatic render scale sometimes being set incorrectly in windowed mode
Improved graphics presets:
Performance mode now reaches 60 fps
Optimized preset settings for battery life
Native resolution is now used on first start, instead of 1366x768
Sprite atlases are now included in the extended manifest file for Asset Bundles