Sons of the Forest, the upcoming horror game sequel heading for Steam, is confirmed to have AI companions who will assist with your various survival demands, similar to Bethesda’s Fallout, with a three-legged mutant and a soldier with a terrible head wound already confirmed as your pals as we look ahead to the Sons of the Forest release date.
Previously spotted in some of the Sons of the Forest’s early gameplay trailers, players can apparently make friends with a three-legged mutant nicknamed Virginia. However, Virginia’s allyship goes beyond just popping up as part of the game’s story, or acting somewhat more kindly than the enemy mutants.
Virginia is just one of the many AI companions that Sons of the Forest players will be able to utilise, and they come with a full system of orders and commands to help you amass resources and quickly build. At the start of each Sons of the Forest playthrough, players will be accompanied by Calvin, a soldier who, like the player, has survived the helicopter crash that traps them in the eponymous forest.
Calvin has suffered a head wound that makes him unable to talk, but he can still be dispatched at the player’s command to fetch resources, or follow you into the world. Calvin will appear in solo and multiplayer games, and can take on some of the resource-gathering busywork that might otherwise keep you from Sons of the Forest’s juicier gameplay.
Like Calvin, Virginia can also be eventually recruited as a full companion, though she will behave differently and serve ulterior gameplay purposes, helping more in combat situations, whereas Calvin is used to build your base. Developer Endnight Games, via IGN, confirms that there are other companions available, also, though these are yet to be revealed.
Your companions will also have unique passive behaviours, like resting at your camp or, in the case of Virginia, trying to communicate with you through dancing and a sign language. Whether you’re playing solo or co-op, they’ll hopefully add an extra dimension to Sons of the Forest, making the world feel more alive and varied. Endnight does confirm however that if you tire of your AI pals, you can just kill them and they will remain dead for the entirety of that playthrough. Now why would you want to do a thing like that?
Check out some of the other best survival games, if you can’t wait until the launch of Sons of the Forest, or perhaps the best multiplayer games. You might also want to keep an eye on the best upcoming games in 2023.
