The Forest is a great survival horror game that doesn’t rely on cheap methods to scare the player. The feeling of isolation on an island that is filled with cannibalistic mutants, accompanied by their creepy counterparts, is enough to keep you on edge all the time. After a plane crash, the protagonist’s child gets kidnapped by a “red” man, and the game tasks you to go after him while maintaining a life on the dangerous island called Peninsula. Your initial and most obvious task is to build a base while keeping your hunger and thirst in check. Most of the stuff you can build is predetermined, but you can also build custom structures. However, disturbing the area by cutting down trees and hunting down animals brings some unwanted visitors to your area. At first, they observe your actions, but they eventually attack and try to tear down your hard work. The first batch of the cannibalistic mutants does not pose much of a threat, it’s their creepy counterparts that start appearing after a few days that start doing the real damage. The deformed mutants called Armsy, Virginia, and Cowman are the ones you should be on the lookout for.

Once you’re done with building and start maintaining a life on the island, the next task becomes obvious: Exploring the caves of the Peninsula and discovering your child’s fate. The game tells its story cryptically and uniquely through the stuff you find in the caves. It’s not necessary to find everything that is story-related to reach the game’s conclusion, but they shine a light on the sinister past of the island you’re traversing. Some equipment, such as a climbing axe and a keycard, is crucial to reaching the endpoint, but most of the stuff you find in the caves is there to make your life easier against the locals. I would be wise to obtain the map and the compass before anything, though. The game actually doesn’t offer much if you’re focused on one thing; thus, your best bet would be building, surviving, and going after the story-related content simultaneously. Its mysterious and dangerous vibe is enough to keep you hooked, though. It also has co-op, and I’d strongly recommend bringing in a friend since it gets quite scary on your own.

A great survival horror game that doesn’t rely on cheap tricks and tells its story in a unique way. With online co-op, it gets a bit easier to survive and explore the creepy caves of the cannibalistic mutant-filled island of Peninsula!

🌲 The Forest — When Your Island Vacation Goes Horribly Wrong

🛬 Story: Where’s My Luggage, and Who Are These People?
You’re a lone survivor of a plane crash. Your son, Timmy, is missing, the plane is in pieces, and the forest around you is crawling with surprisingly agile locals who aren’t exactly thrilled by your visit. Their version of hospitality involves cannibalism and unsettling rituals.

Your goal? Survive, find your son, and... possibly lose your sanity along the way.

🪓 Gameplay:
Crafting — one of the game’s pillars. Tie a rock to a stick, and bam! You’ve got an axe. Or maybe a club. Or just a fragile sense of safety.

Building — throw up a shelter, a wall, a trap, or a lakeside villa with panoramic views of your impending doom.

Hunting — deer prance, rabbits hop, lizards scurry… while you’re starving and munching on a berry that may or may not send you on a spiritual journey.

Caves — dark, bloody, filled with tourist remains. And your flashlight? It’s giving up on life faster than your will to go deeper.

🤝 Co-op: Suffer Together!
Up to 8 players can simultaneously starve, panic, and regret architectural choices. Nothing bonds people like yelling “THEY’RE COMING!” at 3 AM and fending off mutants with too many limbs in too many places.

🧠 Enemies and AI
The local cannibals aren’t just meat on bones. They observe, flank, retreat, and ambush like seasoned tacticians. If you space out, they’ll gently introduce a club to your skull. No warnings. Like a nosy neighbor but with more teeth.

🎨 Graphics and Sound
Visually, the game still holds up well—especially if you don’t stare at the toe models.

The sound design is tense and immersive. The forest breathes, and sometimes that breath is uncomfortably close to your ear.

✔️ Pros:
1. Deep, haunting atmosphere
2. Total creative freedom in building
3. Great co-op mode
4. Surprisingly rich and mysterious story
5. Constant tension and unpredictability

❌ Cons:
1. Occasional bugs (trees flying and deer with breakdowns)
2. May be too hardcore for casual players
3. Cave lighting = a phone on 1% battery

🧾 Verdict
The Forest is the perfect simulator for “how not to spend a vacation.” It’s scary, intense, sometimes eerily beautiful. This is survival not just as a genre—but as a lifestyle. Ideal for those who don’t fear the dark, love fiddling with inventory, and appreciate the thrill of the unknown.

You can build paradise. You can dive into caves to rescue your son. Or you can sit by a fire in silence… and listen to someone breathing behind you.

Ah, The Forest. Nothing screams “relaxing vacation” like a plane crash, your child getting kidnapped by a mutant bodybuilder, and a group of cannibals who treat you like DoorDash on legs.

You start off dazed, bleeding, and alone—basically every Monday morning, but in the woods. Your goal? Survive, build a base, and find Timmy (who, let’s be honest, might just be better off without you at this point).

Building in The Forest is kind of like adult LEGO meets "I have trust issues with trees." Chop down 45 logs to build a hut that looks like a Pinterest fail, all while being watched by a group of naked forest people doing squats in the bushes. Oh, and don’t forget to craft 87 spears and 6 molotovs, because nighttime in this game turns into an episode of Naked and Afraid: Cannibal Edition.

The AI is terrifyingly smart. Cannibals will flank you, hide, and sometimes just sit and watch you like they’re about to write a Yelp review of your survival technique. "3/5 stars—guy screamed a lot but the campfire fish was decent."

And the plot? Let’s just say things go from "save your son" to "what in the biotech sci-fi fever dream is this?" real fast.

In conclusion, The Forest is the only game where you can be mauled by mutants, cry in a log cabin you built yourself, and still consider it a good time. 10/10 would scream at a bush again.