Sons of the Forest Poised to Reach New Heights in 1.0 Launch

A New Trailer Highlights Gliders, Volcanic Caverns, and Horrific Creatures

Sons of the Forest from Endnight Games is nearing its 1.0 launch on February 22nd and it might be one of the biggest releases in the survival genre in years – though the competition is fierce already in 2024 with games like Palworld, Nightingale, and Enshrouded all igniting interest around the same time. A new trailer revealed exclusively by IGN shows a string of suspenseful scenarios and new ways to play.  

Surviving in a ruthlessly dark forest is bad enough, but when misshapen monstrosities peer from the edges of a crackling campfire, it creates one of the most memorable survival horror experiences in gaming. Shown in this trailer, survivalists will be able to get a bird’s eye view of the sinister, yet stunningly beautiful island via a hang glider. Other mechanics teased include mining glowing ore, scarfing down cereal, and trying not to be splattered onto a wall by an unsettling crawling creature. Those who have been playing since the game launched in Early Access might catch other enhancements, but for most, this trailer marks the start of a ten-day countdown to a more “complete” version of a game that’s been insanely popular. 

There are hundreds of compelling survival games out there vying for attention, yet they tend to blend together since many utilize similar gameplay loops and visual language. From a casual survival gamer’s perspective, the nuances are often hard to spot. At first glance, Sons of the Forest might not give the best impressions among its contemporaries but where it shines the brightest is the game’s twisted monsters and how they react to the players’ actions. Thankfully, a lot of the game’s trailers show off these nightmarish manifestations of body horror and a few of the creatures even have a serenity to their behavior. 

Oddly enough the new trailer opens with adorable raccoons scuttling about and being weird little guys, showing off more of the fauna one can expect to happen upon during their impromptu visit to the island. While subtle, these sorts of interactions give me a lot of hope that this game can be more than an intense fear fest. In my short time with the Early Access version, I felt deeply connected to the environment as I strolled around, taking in the breathtaking views and seeing the various animals scatter upon my intrusion.

At the time, I thought the game failed to populate the area with monsters but the eerie quiet made me realize that I might also enjoy this game as a hiking simulator. I don’t get outside as much as I did in my youth – I spent many years bow-hunting whitetail from tree stands and navigating dense woods – so when the monsters disappeared in Sons of the Forest, it was weirdly peaceful. Although the cannibalistic beings and grotesque creatures persisted in my subconscious as a deeper, background terror. I might spend more time in “peaceful mode” than the standard one to deepen that feeling of pleasant exploration.

Sons of the Forest has captivated me since I tried it nearly a year ago and I often think about its unique brand of panic-inducing bushcraft. It is a terrifying joy to discover how the world works, what can be utilized to fend off or avoid the threats that lurk just out of sight, how the environment evolved to be so hostile, and ultimately how to escape. I haven’t quite figured out the game’s narrative (I’ve avoided the countless guides, streams, and videos to keep that mystery for myself) but the secrets at play leave me thinking about it well after signing out. That said, I decided to wait for the full release to see the full breadth of what’s in store for my stranded survivor. Thankfully, the day I fully immerse myself in the game is fast approaching. . .

The 1.0 launch of Sons of the Forest is one of my most anticipated releases of the year and I hope that the game sticks the landing. The game will launch in full on February 22nd, 2024 via Steam. 

The screenshots used in this article were from the Early Access build of Sons of the Forest; the current look of the game is subject to change.

Update, Feb 22, 2024 - This article has been updated with the corrected release date. There was a discrepancy between a few sources but the game ultimately launched in 1.0 on Feb 22nd.