First-person open-world survival horror game The Forest looks brilliant
Inspired by The Descent and Cannibal Holocaust.
Vancouver-based studio SKS Games may not have long history with the only title to its name being the iPad horror outing End Night, but it's comprised of special effects artists who worked on Tron Legacy and 300, and the team's bold visual style has carried over into its debut PC game, a first-person open world survival horror affair called The Forest.
As the title implies, you're stranded in a forest after a plane crash. To stay alive you'll have to chop down trees, build shelter, hunt for food, maintain a fire to stay warm, plant vegetation, and set traps. For you see, this is no ordinary forest, but rather a forest inhabited by freakish cannibalistic mutants.
SKS's Mick Solomons noted in an e-mail to Eurogamer that The Forest was inspired by such cult classic films as The Descent and Cannibal Holocaust. The pale, naked foes briefly glimpsed in the evocative announcement trailer below certainly resemble the monsters from the former, while the game's day/night cycle and unassuming atmosphere that doesn't simply shroud everything in darkness and scream "look at me, I'm a horror game!" recalls Cannibal Holocaust's gradual descent into madness (though with thankfully less animal cruelty).
As far as engaging with the mutants goes, SKS explained that you'll be able to choose between combat with crude weapons or taking the stealthy approach. Intriguingly, the enemies are said to contain their own "beliefs, families and morals."
Adding to The Forest's creep factor will be Oculus Rift support, which should make things extra terrifying.
The Forest is set for release later this year on PC. It just recently went up on Steam Greenlight and I'd be surprised if it doesn't get accepted in short order.
