“The Forest” is a single player or co-op survival horror game available on the popular gaming platform Steam. The game is an open world experience but also has a storyline that can be followed simultaneously.
Gameplay:
As you make your way out of the plane, opening suitcases and collecting items along the way, you will be forced to set up a shelter and campfire to eat and rest. After a few in-game days have past, you will start coming across cannibalistic creatures that will try to kill you. It is your job to craft weapons to defend yourself from these creatures, as well as upgrading your shelter so they can’t raid you. As the days go on, the cannibals will become increasingly more dangerous, and you will start to encounter bosses. These are buffed creatures, some of them are massive and no longer resemble humans. At the same time, as you are exploring and fighting cannibals you will receive hints that make it clear that your son has been captured, likely by the cannibals. As the game progresses, you will make your way through dangerous caves and eventually find a research laboratory where you will find your son and fight the final boss.
Storyline:
“The Forest” is about a father and son who survive a plane crash on a remote island. The game starts off with a first-person perspective from inside an airplane. In this scene, the player has a son who is sitting next to them. The plane then starts to stall and goes into mayday, later crashing. The scene cuts to black when the plane makes impact with the ground. Once you wake up, you will notice that your son is nowhere to be seen. Although there are bodies of survivors, your son is missing. The son is missing and it is the father’s goal to find his son. This isn’t any old island though; it is overrun by a weird tribe of cannibalistic people. Some creatures, however, don’t even resemble humans at all. They are large creatures with incredible strength. The player will later find a research lab and come to realize that there are scientists that once had partial control over these beings. When the son is found in the research lab, he appears to be dead on an operating table. We learn that he was kidnapped to be used as a sacrifice to bring another person back to life.
Sound Effects:
The sound effects used throughout “The Forest” are impressive. Mainly, the sounds of the cannibal tribe people, as well as the monsters. All the tribe people have a variety of different callouts and or war cries. The sounds they make differ based on what physical movement they might be doing. For example, if they try to swing, jump, or lunge for an attack, they will make specific growling sounds for that. One reviewer says in a 2018 GameSpot review, “however, until blood curdling screeches fill the night and glowing eyes appear in the distance.” They also respond to pain and or death with sounds and body language. They will make moans and sounds of discomfort when they are nearing death. Also, sometimes they will surround a dead corpse and appear to be mourning over their loss.
Rating:
After recognizing some of the key elements to this game, my final rating would be a 4 out of 5 stars. I absolutely love the survival horror aspect. In a lot of horror games, you are usually helpless against any enemies. In this game, however, you can fight back and the cannibals show emotion to that.
One thing that could improve is the gun selection. There is only one ‘gun’ in the game that can be crafted and it is already extremely hard to get. I think that if you are playing solo, it can be quite difficult to fight a lot of cannibals. I would recommend playing with friends.
Written by Armando Provedor, Lethbridge Polytechnic
