My feelings about Forest Reigns are equal parts enthusiasm and disappointment, inflation and deflation, as evidenced by the back of the trailer. On the one hand, as a fan of strange forests, or all forests, I’m looking forward to the prospect of an FPS set in a post-apocalyptic Paris overrun by sentient, livid trees. It also comes from a team led by a former STALKER developer, and STALKER alums certainly know how to post a good apocalypse. On the other hand, the preview video suggests a game in which you’ll treat the crazy flora mainly as a source of “emerging” cover and terrain traps. Have a look.
The game’s forest is not “just part of the environment,” he intones Steam pagebut “a conscious being with desires and intentions of its own.” You’ll “interact with it to discover its secrets, use it to defeat enemies, or face its wrath as it reacts to your choices.” So far it seems your choices are mostly shoot/don’t shoot. Trees don’t like being shot at, which seems a bit elementary in the context of “desires and intentions.” I don’t necessarily want to talk to them, but their opposition to pumping AK47 ammunition doesn’t seem very mysterious to me.
This is what some people suggest Gaia theory there’s something going on here, but blowing up volatile, glowing bits or luring plants into choking enemies just looks like variations on exploding oil barrels and predators to feed on in Far Cry. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, however, and it’s possible that you’ll develop a deeper connection with the trees than can really be shown in an edited gameplay overview. Fingers crossed.
I don’t think it’s open world, but it is advertised as non-linear and mission-based, with factions you can cooperate or compete with to unlock different story outcomes. There is also a crafting system and a variety of weapons that can be modified and cooed. Ha, I bet some of these guns are made of wood, i.e. trees. I bet the trees don’t like it either. So unwise.
Forest Reigns has no release date. While you wait for it, let me try to lead you into the bush by telling you about other tree-themed games. The obvious and scariest one is Darkwood. This makes the trees in Forest Reigns that I’ve seen look like the cute, geometric palm trees from Sonic The Hedgehog. There’s also Witch Strandings, an engaging homage to Kojima from Strange Scaffold, and the upcoming Roots Devour, in which you’re a blood-drinking tree.
