Sons of the Forest update attempts to rein in Kelvin's chaos

The Sons of the Forest protagonist checks if Kelvin is okay
(Image credit: Endnight Games)

Sons of the Forest has a new patch out now, and it makes Kelvin a hell of a lot less destructive.

The new patch first went live yesterday, March 9, and was announced on the Steam forums for Sons of the Forest. One of the key changes is that it's no longer possible to open a locked door with a stick, for which developer Endnight Games apologizes to speedrunners for.

Kelvin, the loveable idiot sidekick who won over players' hearts big time, now won't cut down trees with player structures attached to them. Thankfully, this means Kelvin won't go around hacking down treehouses anymore, which is a huge pain point among players (unless you love Kelvin, in which case you might well forgive him).

Elsewhere, binoculars and a hand glider are now available in Sons of the Forest, and a Defensive Wall gate has also been implemented. There's even a new boss fight, a mini-boss encounter that occurs right when players are trying to gain entry to the Food Bunker.

There's also now a sleep cooldown meter in Sons of the Forest, and you can even lock doors by simply placing a stick against the door on the inside. There are also some "additional story elements" in the new patch, although Endnight isn't revealing what these elements are right now.

Considering someone's already beaten Sons of the Forest in under eight minutes without harming a soul, this new patch could really throw a spanner into the works of the speedrunning community. Here's hoping the runners can adapt quickly to keep those run times up to par.

Check out our Sons of the Forest shotgun location guide if you're looking to get your hands on a critical item early on.

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Hirun Cryer

Hirun Cryer is a freelance reporter and writer with Gamesradar+ based out of U.K. After earning a degree in American History specializing in journalism, cinema, literature, and history, he stepped into the games writing world, with a focus on shooters, indie games, and RPGs, and has since been the recipient of the MCV 30 Under 30 award for 2021. In his spare time he freelances with other outlets around the industry, practices Japanese, and enjoys contemporary manga and anime.

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