The Forest vs Sons of The Forest

[BloodyRo]

Now that SOTF released what's your opinion on both games, which one is better and why? Was The Forest completely surpassed or are there things that The Forest still does better?

[𝑲]

I enjoyed both but here is my summary of their strengths:

The Forest:
Better caving, cave systems
Spookier forest atmosphere, character doesn't initially know the island has already been inhabited which adds interest to the reveals
Easier building system, more options in some cases like houseboats and traps
More coherent story
Lead up to exploring the sink hole
More stuff to do and find out in the snow region

Sons of the Forest:
Better graphics
Seasons make old areas interesting again
Building system is easier to customise, easier to cut the proper holes for staircases and windows, more immersive (manual activity instead of filling in blueprint)
Much bigger island
Less primitive weaponry (a preference)

I think The Forest is the better overall game at the moment, but the developers have shown they stick to their update schedule and can improve a lot through early access.

[Grendizer]

Since SOTF is in early access it might be a bit unfair to compare 1 to 1. I think at the moment the 1st game has the more complete feel, less bugs, more to do, more balanced.

SOTF is already making me spend hours in-game, without following the story, just trying out things. The atmosphere of the forest with its updated graphics cleary are a nice upgrade, but so far I would consider it more of a DLC than a whole new game.

I'm hardly an established gamer in both games, just my general impression so far.

[Regufyz]

SOTF is not nearly close to being finished. The base Systems are better than TF1 so i have high hopes for it to be better in the end

[Alzral]

You comparing a finished game to one in early access..

[R-Design Dominatrix]

SOTF is much, much superior to first Forest

[goatfish]

you're all wrong.

no game will ever come close to even half of the superiority of Elmos Letter Adventure

[blacky sigtard]

i like men so i would go 3

[Yourcall]

The forest 2 is just The Forests finished product. You have been playing a Beta for years and now its time to pay for the full game.

[Mathias Giovanni]

I'm not sure I like the idea of firearms. Suspense and horror tend to yield to action adventure when you bring weapons into it. I would rather have more elaborate traps and expanded craftables. But it can be done if Dead Space and maybe Prey is an example. But those tend to have a different play style.

I suppose one way to deal with it is have have the crazy creatures be able to disarm firearms. Maybe it angers them while the other more mundane are ignored.

[Mathias Giovanni]

Originally posted by BloodyRo:

Now that SOTF released what's your opinion on both games, which one is better and why? Was The Forest completely surpassed or are there things that The Forest still does better?

So far it seems like maybe the cave systems in game one were more intense. In the old game the base or bases were for storing equipment and food so you can in general go do into the caves and figure out what is going on. And certain items unlocking other parts of the caves such as being able to remove a wall.

Preparing for the caves is above ground with some combat gameplay to keep things interesting is a good game play loop. I'm not sure Sons of the Forest has that loop though.

[Evono]

Originally posted by Alzral:

You comparing a finished game to one in early access..

SOTF was dated as 1.0 release on 23.02.2023 which was already a date from multiple pusbacks.

SOTF right now is like Version 0.9.5 for Polish its practically finished as much as i know.

forest 1 is way superior , SOTF feels empty , boring , yes the map is bigger but like 70% feels boring and empty.

[FandangoChristmas]

I thought this game was very subpar back in the day, but SOTF is a huge decline. I would recommend TF for its creepier atmosphere , better caves and less bugs, even though its equally as boring.

[SiriusBeesnas]

I do somewhat agree with the apologists who jump at the first chance they get to defend their new flavor of the month game, it's not entirely fair to pit a released game with several years of patches and added content (even though there are still janky bugs in TF1, such as not being able to pick up a specific collectable photo in a cave) against a game that's in early access (even though it's been delayed a few times and it was about to release before they jumped to EA).

That being said, the underwhelming crafting system compared to the one in the first game, the dull and disconnected caves and the huge, empty map with no fast or fun way to traverse it really put a damper on my enjoyment of SOTF. Maybe it'll all change with patches and updates, we can only hope. For now, TF1 is mechanically the best game at this point.

[Crix]

Def enjoying the first one, I plan to get the second one. Seems about right OP from the rundown from what I have seen. Probably best to wait for more content and yes the caves are what made the game most interesting and they seem to have made that department dull and boring in the second one.

[RequiemsRose]

I'm a bit hesitant to compare the original with the sequel in all honesty. The sequel has the potential to surpass the original, but I would have to agree that it is nowhere near that point as it currently stands. It is abundantly apparent that the sequel is unfinished, and if this is the state it's in I'm honestly glad they went with early access, because it certainly isn't ready for full release in the state it's in (and i appreciate the ability to leave feedback that may actually change/improve development, like the almost immediate addition of actual hotkeys after feedback began).

As it stands now though, if I were to compare them:
-Enemy AI has more personality and complexity to it, but pathing is still an area that needs improvement (especially near player structures) and spawn rates can be wildly varied with some areas seeming to have endless spawns and others being surprisingly desolate.
-Building has become cumbersome, yet in some ways more immersive. It seems excessively slow to progress in for the pacing of the default settings though (seasons are nice but in default you start in summer and seasons seem to change every 5 days, so getting a winter house up before winter hits can be a struggle, luckily it also seems you don't really NEED one either, but I was nomadic in the original to so maybe that's just me).
-Most the caves are far more desolate and not as large as the original, with some seeming to only exist as loot locations or potential player bases. There are some larger caves (though brightness, or lack thereof, has been its own struggle in those) which is nice, and it is appreciated that in some cases the environment can actually change as you progress through them.
-The map may be 4X the size, but i'm not sure it actually needed to be since a whole lot of it seems to be desolate aside from a few enemy villages and maybe a campsite here and there. Mostly it seems like the pacing of the environment is too fast for the environment itself. There's a lot to explore and if you go by the season cycles, it would take you years in game to explore it all (though functionally you'd only be 20+ days in for a full season cycle). Maybe this will be filled out a bit more as development continues but I honestly don't see much to indicate that is a development goal. Doesn't help that a lot of our mobility or transportation options (log sled, rafts, gliders, easily accessible zipline systems, heck even the turtle shell sled) have all been removed or reworked such that the remaining options aren't as easy to access if they exist at all. Kelvin compensates a little, but also has a range and he isn't always the brightest if you don't know exactly how to work with him (and do NOT tell him to gather logs if building anything in trees).
-Companions are nice, but mostly seem to compensate for the changes between games, especially for a solo player. Like the building has become more tedious, but Kelvin helps with speeding it up a bit by collecting resources while you do other things, and Virginia helps with the over abundant spawns if you manage to get her on your side and set up well. They seem more like crutches to help a solo player in a more multiplayer oriented game rather than actually necessary as companions.

Also, not touching on the story comparison one bit in order to avoid spoilers, but I have some critiques there as well. Just keeping them to myself for those who havent gotten the sequel yet, or have but havent figured out the story much yet.