If you haven't played the game or seen the new ending and don't want spoilers for it, bookmark this, play the game and return after you've finished.



for it, bookmark this, play the game and return after you've finished. If you prefer to see the ending as hopeful, don't read this.



If you don't mind spoilers, and want to make sure you enjoy the ending when you see it rather than misinterpreting it as hopeful, when the game is clearly dark, then read on, and enjoy your new outlook on this game's grim ending.

Some people seem to dislike this ending, calling it too 'hopeful', which contradicts the overall dark tone of the game, as well as all the evidence encountered in the game's environment. I'm sure some people like the hopeful aspect. However, I find if you think on it more, the ending is still be worrisome and uncertain, just like the before. This may be a bit long, but trust me, it is worth the read.



When you think about it, we have no idea how long Megan has been revived, or if she had previous seizures to the one that came before her transformation. We do know that shortly before her transformation, she suffered an episode of temporary insanity in which she killed her father, aka the red man. For all we know, there could have been several seizures before the actual transformation. Perhaps after the first seizure, she was fine. Then after a later one, upon waking she attacked her father, since there was obviously a period of aggression/temporary insanity preceding her final seizure and transformation.



Just because a seizure preceded the final transformation doesn't mean it was the only seizure to come before the transformation. I choose to believe this is only the first, and that others may yet come, and that just because he didn't immediately transform doesn't mean it won't happen. What if Timmy transforms while his father is asleep and unarmed? Or perhaps he'll suffer the temporary insanity and kill his father in his sleep, only for neighbors or child services to later discover him when he doesn't show for school.



Perhaps after Timmy kills his father, child services will witness the final transformation, only to be killed because, unlike his father, they are completely unprepared for such a thing. Then the mutated child rampages the neighborhood, killing dozens until police or riot squad finally put him down. Then, since the transformation wasn't televised (unlike the original ending implied), many won't believe such a thing actually happened, meaning another company could pick up the research once more.



The ending may initially come off as 'hopeful', since Timmy seems fine after this first seizure, but when you put more thought into it, there's still plenty of possibility for a terrifying outcome later on. We have no idea how many seizures Megan had before her temporary insanity and eventual transformation.



As sad as losing a child is, his father saw the evidence, and lots of it, before choosing to try to revive him with the artifact. An understandable and emotional choice, but a poor one in the long run. At least he got a little more time with his son before the eventual disaster... but a shame that others are likely to suffer the consequences of his actions.



While trying to get back into the swing of thing for writing, I decided to express a theory I have on a extended ending that appeared in the v0.68 release of The Forest. I got the idea while hearing some people complain that the new ending is too 'hopeful' (one person even called it Disney-like) when the game itself has an overall dark tone, and there is a great deal of in-game evidence as to what is likely to happen. I'm going to post this in several places, but I wanted to make sure it was here as well because this is where I share most things I write.I may even end up doing a series on theories, for games, movies, tv shows, etc.Link to it on Reddit: Reddit: (Spoiler) Theory on v0.68's Extended Ending Steam Community Forums: The Forest Discussion: Theory on Extended Ending