Alright, gamer, buckle up! *Forest 3* has indeed been officially announced by Endnight Games at The Game Awards on December 11, 2025, and it’s taking a wild, unexpected turn. Forget the spooky islands you’ve come to know; this sequel is blasting off into an entirely new sci-fi setting, apparently on an alien world.

Here’s the lowdown on what we know so far about this genre-bending leap:

**A Bold New Direction: Sci-Fi Survival Horror**
Endnight Games completely blindsided the gaming community with *Forest 3*’s reveal, showcasing a full announcement trailer at The Game Awards 2025. The biggest shocker? The franchise is ditching its signature horror-survival forest environment for a science fiction landscape. The trailer teased viewers with mysterious imagery, featuring a malfunctioning spaceship crash-landing on an unknown planet teeming with unique flora and fauna, including “facehugger-like creatures” and other massive, intimidating beasts. This pivot suggests the studio is keen to explore new gameplay possibilities while keeping survival and exploration at its core.

**Gameplay Elements and Setting**
The trailer for *Forest 3* presented first-person gameplay footage that included sci-fi technology, what appears to be a shoulder-mounted crane or robot arm that can catch creatures and act as a scanner, and futuristic weapons like a space plasma gun. The new planet itself is described as swampy and foreboding, with a “grey-blue, clammy, soaked-through on a rainy day look”. While the crash-landing plotline mirrors the introduction of the first *The Forest* game, the overall departure in setting is significant.

**Developer and Connection to Previous Games**
*Forest 3* is once again being developed by Endnight Games, the studio behind the original *The Forest* (released in 2018) and *Sons of the Forest* (which had its full release in February 2024). While *Sons of the Forest* hinted at an alien origin to its central mystery, the direct leap to another planet for *Forest 3* was still a major surprise. Fans have been speculating on how this new sci-fi spin will tie into the overarching lore, especially considering the ending of *Sons of the Forest* and its mysterious devices.

**Release Information and Fan Reaction**
Currently, a release date for *Forest 3* is unconfirmed, and no specific platforms have been announced, though it is widely expected to come to PC, likely launching in Early Access first, similar to its predecessors. Given that *Sons of the Forest* experienced delays, the studio might be hesitant to set a firm release window at this stage.

The announcement sent shockwaves through the gaming community, with social media exploding with reactions ranging from excitement for the bold new direction to mixed feelings about leaving the familiar horror-survival formula behind. Some fans have also expressed disappointment, as the reveal of *Forest 3* has led to concerns that *Sons of the Forest* may not be ported to consoles like the PlayStation 5.

So, while we don’t have a release date to mark on our calendars just yet, the confirmation of *Forest 3* and its ambitious sci-fi premise has certainly got the gaming world buzzing! Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to go theory-craft how a cannibal-infested forest leads to spaceships and alien worlds. It’s all part of the game, right?