Map Markers – Sons of the Forest

One of the most useful features a survival game can offer its players is a strong navigating system. With the right tools and a decent map, living through more days and finding your way around a game’s world becomes much easier. Sons of the Forest combines two genres, horror and survival, to make for an especially gut-wrenching experience. The map and its markers help players locate key areas, whether those be story-related or simply ways to find a path back to safety. While they are indeed useful, they can also be a bit confusing in the beginning as there is no real explanation given for what markers mean. If you are looking to find out more about map markers and their meanings in Sons of the Forest, read on below.

Note: After v1.0, some additional map markers have entered the game. Please refer to our guide Locations, Map Markers, and GPS Changes in V1.0 for more information.

Sons of the Forest Map & Marker Meanings

When you first spawn into Sons of the Forest, the area in which you land will depend on how quickly you got through the initial cutscene. This means that you could spawn on the seashore, in the midst of the woods, or up in the snowy mountains. One thing, however, remains constant, and that is the location of certain map markers on your GPS Tracker. To open it yourself, simply press / / . You can view what the island map looks like in its entirety below.

When you open up your GPS, you will likely notice a variety of map markers. As you walk around, you may also see new points of interest appear. Each marker and its meaning is as follows:

• Helicopter Icon
  • If you are wondering about your spawn location, this marker will tell you where your helicopter crashed at the start of the game.
• Blue K Icon
  • This icon appears as a dark blue letter “K” and signifies where Kelvin is. The blue dotted trail following the K marker indicates what path Kelvin has taken.
• Colored Letter Icon
  • If you are playing in multiplayer, a colored letter icon indicates where another player is. If their name is “Dave,” then the marker will be a colored letter D.
• Green Circle
  • If you are looking for a story point, the green circle icon serves to show you where points related to progression are located. You can generally expect to find useful items such as tools, weapons, or the 3D Printer at these markers. These will only populate after finding red-flashing laptops (in caves or bunkers).
• Purple Exclamation Mark
  • If you see a purple exclamation point on your GPS, you will find useful items or weapons there.
• White Rocky Arch
  • Icons that look like white rocky arches will appear on your map and these signify cave openings. You can explore such caves for key items and story progression.

Players can also place map markers themselves by using a stick and GPS locator.

That is all you need to know about the map markers and their meanings in Sons of the Forest. If you are struggling to survive in the game, be sure to check out some of our other guides.