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Sons of the Forest on PC. Click to open it full size.
Sons of the Forest is an open-world survival horror game for PC from Endnight Games, available on Steam. You are sent to a remote island to find a missing billionaire and end up fighting cannibals and mutants instead. You gather, craft and build your own base, with no quest markers telling you where to go.
The companions are what set it apart from other survival games. Kelvin, a soldier who survived the crash with you, follows written orders to fetch logs, build fires and finish walls. Later you can win over Virginia, a three-armed mutant who fights at your side if you treat her well.
It is the sequel to The Forest. It left Early Access with its full 1.0 release on February 22, 2024. It runs on 64-bit Windows 10 and 11, supports controllers, and plays solo or in online co-op with up to eight players.
Already on the island? Tell us how you keep Kelvin alive. Got questions before buying? Reach out to us directly.
What You Need to Know
- On PC it is sold on Steam only. There is one edition and no paid DLC.
- This is a horror game for adults. Steam lists intense violence, blood and gore, horror themes and occasional nudity.
- Up to eight players can play together online, and the whole story works in co-op.
- It needs 12 GB of RAM at minimum and an SSD is preferred. If your PC falls short, it also runs on Boosteroid.
Quick Facts
How to Download Sons of the Forest on Windows
Sons of the Forest is a Steam game, so you need the free Steam app and a Steam account. It costs $29.99, comes in one edition, and needs 20 GB of free space.
- Step 1. Install Steam. Download it from the Steam website and sign in.
- Step 2. Open the store page. Go to Sons of the Forest on Steam.
- Step 3. Buy the game. Click Add to Cart and finish checkout.
- Step 4. Install it on your SSD. Find it in your Library, click Install and choose a drive with 20 GB free.
- Step 5. Launch it from your Library. Pick single-player or multiplayer from the main menu.
💡 Your PC is too weak? Cloud gaming is an option. Try Boosteroid.
☁️ Your PC is too weak? Cloud gaming is an option.
Sons of the Forest is on Boosteroid, which runs the game on its own hardware and streams it to you, so the graphics card and the RAM are its problem, not yours. You buy the game on Steam first, then launch it through the service. Use a wired connection or strong Wi-Fi, since lag makes fights with mutants much harder.
What Is Sons of the Forest?
Sons of the Forest picks up years after The Forest. You fly to a remote island as part of a team searching for a missing billionaire and his family. The helicopter goes down, and you are left in the woods with almost nothing.
The island is home to cannibal tribes and stranger mutants that live in the caves below. There are no quests or markers telling you what to do next, so you decide when to build, when to explore and when to push into the caves where the story is hidden.
The GPS locator marks places worth exploring. The rest is up to you.
You play in first person. You chop trees for logs, break sticks for fires and build anything from a small cabin to a walled compound, placing each log yourself or using blueprints. Seasons change, so you catch salmon in spring and summer and store meat before winter, when food gets scarce for everyone on the island, cannibals included.
Defending a log wall from a cannibal attack.
You fight with axes, spears, bows, pistols and shotguns you craft or find. Cannibals react to what you do: they watch from a distance at first, then send bigger groups if you look like a threat. You can face all of it alone, with Kelvin and Virginia, or with up to seven friends.
Cannibals close in on the beach.
Official Trailer
Watch the official 1.0 launch trailer for Sons of the Forest to see the island, the cannibals and mutants, and the bases you can build.
Key Features
Your crash survivor cannot speak, but he reads your notes. Send him for logs, sticks or water, or have him finish a wall.
A three-armed mutant who watches you at first. Earn her trust and she joins you, and she can even carry a gun.
Place every log yourself or use blueprints. Cut windows and doors with an axe and build anywhere on the island.
Spring and summer bring fish and plants. Winter brings snow, scarce food and hungrier enemies.
The story and the best gear sit in dark cave systems full of mutants. Bring light and a backup plan.
Play the whole game online with friends, share items and build one big base together.
Is This Game for You?
Our Take
🎮 Our Take
Sons of the Forest is one of the few survival games where the building feels physical. Placing logs one by one sounds slow, but it is the reason every base looks different. Kelvin is the smartest idea in the game: a helper you order around with notes turns hours of chopping into something you manage instead of grind. The first nights are tense, because the cannibals watch and test you before they attack. The weak spots are the story, which is thin and easy to miss if you skip the caves, and a late game where a well-defended base takes most of the fear away.
If you liked The Forest, or you have friends who want a co-op survival game with real scares, buy it. It is a finished 1.0 release at a fair price, with no DLC to chase. If you mostly play alone and need a strong story to keep going, it can feel aimless after the first few hours, so set yourself goals or bring a friend. If your PC is older than the minimum spec, try it on Boosteroid before you upgrade.
System Requirements
These are the requirements Endnight lists on Steam. The minimum is a GTX 1060 and 12 GB of RAM, so most gaming PCs from the last several years can run it. It works on 64-bit Windows 10 and Windows 11.
The dense forest and long view distance lean hard on the graphics card, so lower foliage and shadows first if it stutters. If your PC falls short, see our Best Gaming Desktops guide, or stream it through cloud gaming instead.
Tips for Beginners
Put Kelvin to work early
Open your notepad and order Kelvin to gather logs and sticks while you explore. Do not hit him by accident, since he can die and does not come back.
Leave Virginia alone at first
Do not attack the three-armed mutant who watches you. Let her get closer over time and she becomes a companion.
Follow the GPS locator
The markers on your GPS point to places with gear and story. Check them before you wander blind.
Prepare for winter
Dry meat and gather food while the weather is warm. Snow makes food harder to find for you and the cannibals.
Save at a shelter
Build a tent or shelter early. It is where you save and sleep, so place one near wherever you explore.
Best Sons of the Forest Mods to Start With
Sons of the Forest has no Steam Workshop. Most mods run on RedLoader, a free community mod loader you install once into the game folder, and they are shared on Nexus Mods. All five below need RedLoader and are easy to switch off from a Mods tab in the pause menu.
💡 These are fan-made mods, not official ones. There is no anti-cheat, but in co-op every player should run the same mods, and some only work for the host. A game patch can break mods until their authors update them, so back up your saves first. To remove everything, delete the Mods folder RedLoader created, or use Verify integrity of game files in Steam.
Sons of the Forest Screenshots
The island by day and night: waterfalls and beaches, cannibal totems, a mutant in the caves and the crafting mat where you lay out your gear. Click any image to open it full size.
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Sons of the Forest FAQ
How many players can play Sons of the Forest co-op?
Do I need to play The Forest first?
Can I play Sons of the Forest offline?
Does Sons of the Forest run on Steam Deck?
What are the Sons of the Forest system requirements?
Support and Community
- Endnight Games, the developer’s official website.
- r/SonsOfTheForest on Reddit, the game’s subreddit, for base ideas, co-op partners and help.
- Steam news for Sons of the Forest, where Endnight posts patch notes.
- Sons of the Forest on Nexus Mods and RedLoader, for fan-made mods.
Explore more Windows games: Permafrost for Windows · Subnautica 2 for Windows · Enshrouded for Windows · Rust for Windows · Best Horror Games on PC
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