The Forest Quartet Guide

The Forest Quartet is a 3D narrative puzzle-game that tells the story of Nina, the recently deceased member of a quarter living in the forest. By controlling her, you are able to make the band’s final performance possible. This guide will run through the game from start to finish, including the puzzles you encounter along the way.

The Beginning

When you are able to start controlling Nina, simply head along the linear path, turning on the lamps as you go (there will be many of these in the game but whether or not you turn them on is optional. However, it will get you achievements). When you come across tangled branches, use your sing ability (L2 for console and L-shift for PC) to clear them. You will now come across an empty orchestra area. Head towards the piano and interact with it.

The Piano Player

Press ahead through the landscape (probably a Trypophobia warning here). You can’t really get lost so explore as you wish but when you are ready, head north. You come across a yellow dial which you interact with to pick it up. Carry the dial along the path until you get to a series of yellow objects. Place the dial where the game instructs you to and then use your Sing ability to activate it.

Next, head towards the cone-shaped object and Sing to activate this also. Head right, picking up the yellow cube as you do so. Take the cube to the next area and place it upon the rectangular shape in order to activate the tower that will lift you into the next area, using your glide/jump ability to do so.

Follow the path until you get to a tunnel with a spiral shape above it. You will come across a house covered in darkness. When you are ready, continue on until you come across some turnstiles. Your goal here is to activate the middle cone. Use your Sing ability to turn each of them and when this is done, pick up the nearby circle and carry it to the top of the cone. Again, Sing to activate this. Next, carry on right until you come across another tunnel with the spiral icon.

After walking a bit further, you will come across another area with a rectangular board and a circle in a cage. Your aim is to activate the board correctly so you can free the circle. To do this, next to the board you will see a signpost that tells you which bars need to be lit up. Pick up the cube already on the board and drop it on the first bar to switch it off. Then, head to the left and find a glowing box. Pick this up, carry it back to the board and place it on the final bar to light it up. You will then unlock the circle!

Pick up and carry the circle all the way to the right. You will then enter an area with some cones where you can drop your circle nearby. Use your Sing ability to activate the cones with the dial above them. Then, pick up the dial to the right of the area and carry it to the only remaining cone left without one. Activate this one also. Finally, interact with the circle once more and place it above the final cone, using your Sing to clear away the debris. When you are ready, continue on until you get to your final tunnel.

You will soon come across a new area. First, use your Sing power to begin spinning the wheels with the black ball placed on top and then Sing once more to activate the circle on top of the middle cone. Now that you have freed the glowing cube, carry it to the platform in the top right to activate the tower. Our goal now is to find the missing cog.

Use this tower to grab the circle sitting on the cliff. Next, carry it back to your second wheel area and place it on the cone ready for use later. Finally, go back to the top right and collect the glowing cube again. Carry this all the way to the bottom left of the main area and place it on the platform to again activate the tower. Now, grab the cog and take it back to place upon the empty platform. Now use your Sing to activate the entire mechanism.

The Cello Player 

Once you have activated the cello, walk onward until you come across what I called the matchsticks. We must use these in order to proceed through this level by creating glowing bridges. Interact with them to hook them to each other and illuminate the bridge (but be careful hooking them as the thread easily breaks). Keep doing the same until you reach a dimly lit area and here, you can levitate across the levels to turn on the lamps. Our goal now is to light our way to the top.

Once you have done this, a new path will be illuminated. Follow this until you come to an interaction that will become common in The Forest Quartet – they are guides and this one is telling you to take a leap of faith. Drop down, keep walking forward and then take a sharp left around the rock to advance towards the next area. When you come across a volcano-like object, pick up the nearest lightbulb and place it on top. This will activate the nearby matchsticks and again, link them together like before, starting from the lightbulb and following it around. Once that is done, go ahead and Sing to proceed.

Continue on until you come to a water-filled area and here you will first meet the Demons. One of which is carrying the very lightbulb you need to progress. The Demons fear light and so we must use the environment to our advantage. Have them follow you to a nearby working lightbulb and then interact with the switch when they are near you. The light will cause them to panic and drop the lightbulb. When this happens, quickly pick it up and carry it to the volcano-like structure that is at the beginning of the area. This will again activate the matchsticks which you can go ahead and link together. Now proceed to the right.

Again, we must use the matchsticks to get to the next area. You will now come across a row of them and if you interact nearby, it will project the solution onto the wall for you to copy. Once you have done this, follow the bridge onwards. You will come to another drop, where once you proceed you will soon come across a second house, this time being tormented by Demons. Our goal here is to activate the lightbulbs on each side of the house, starting with the right one.

Head right along the path until you get to some simple matchsticks. Join them as you work your way around the rock. Once across the bridge, join the next matchsticks in an ‘X’ shape to proceed. You will then drop down into an area where you can interact with the guides in order to help you with the next puzzle. Luckily, I can just show you as below!

Once you have solved this puzzle, follow the bridge and use Sing to activate the first lightbulb. Now, cross by the house and head off to the left. For now, ignore the nearby matchsticks and instead head south and then left across the outcrop and activate these matchsticks instead. You will now enter an area that has a lightbulb, two matchsticks and a Demon holding an ‘off’ matchstick. Again, the light is our friend here. Lure him to the area around the lightbulb and quickly hook one lit matchstick to the Demon’s matchstick and then onto the third and final lit one. (Don’t do this too far away as the thread can easily break). Now you can connect the now-activated matchsticks.

Turn on the lamp in the new area to reveal two Demons, each holding an unlit matchstick. This is much like the previous puzzle but with two Demons instead. Rally them into positions that will allow you to connect them all together the way you would if they were stationary. Now connect the activated matchsticks to the right of the area before crossing the bridge. You can see how I did it below.

You will now find another matchstick area and this time, the Demon is holding the key to the puzzle.  Simply copy the solution when he stands still for long enough. Again, connect the nearest matchsticks when you’re done. This will take you back to the matchsticks we ignored earlier, but don’t ignore them this time. Finally, activate the second lightbulb.

The Drummer 

Once you have entered the inferno-covered land, ignore the glowing icons and towering flames for now and instead continue onwards until you come across a new interaction. This ability allows you to transform into butterflies!

Our goal in this level is to drench the fire blocking one of our paths. To do this, use your butterfly ability to enter the nearest Mario-style tube to the left (these can be tricky to hit so if you hover nearby them until it ‘shakes’, it will suck you in). Pass through the area (turning on the lamp if you wish) and through the next tube. Once in the next area, use the same interaction to turn back to your ‘solid’ form. Head to the left, pick up the glowing box and carry it back to place it on the platform. Transform back into your butterfly form and use the tower to head up towards another tunnel, and then another, and another.

In the next area, head towards the tube located under the web-style icon. Transform back and then head towards the giant wheel. Use your Sing ability to activate it and release water. Transform into butterflies again and head back through the same tube. Now you are able to pass through the middle area that was previously on fire (with the house icon). Keep going and head through the next tube. Once the cutscene is over, go through yet another tube until you enter an area with 4 different routes.

Our goal is to collect all the stars in order to go through the door that is in the right tube. So for now, head towards the bottom tube and activate the star you find within. Return to the main area and do the same for the tube on the left. Again, follow the route to the right until you get to the final star. Finally, enter the last remaining tube and the door beyond. Once here, go through another tube and the next one until you come to the second wheel. Transform into the butterfly form using the nearby platform and then Sing to activate this one also.

The Final Warm-Up

This level combines a lot of our previous mechanics. To rescue the men, head south and then left to activate the nearest dial with your Sing ability. Next, follow the path to the right and pick up the lost dial (whilst you are here, activate the star like you did in the previous level), taking it back to return it to the furthermost cone. Now head a bit more south from this cone and follow the path until you come across another star, again activate it and continue past the doors until you come to a tube and the third star in the back. Head back past the tube and go further south to a transformation plate. Use this and then head through the previous tube and then the next.

Grab the final star and then head back to the big doors, making sure to transform back along the way. Grab the circle and take it back to the largest cone we found earlier. Sing to activate it.

When you gain control, head left and south until you come across a tube and a giant wheel. Sing to activate the wheel and then head further left until you find the missing piece of pipe. Carry this and place it over the gap which will drench the fire, allowing you to continue onwards to the right.

Push past the tube and transform using the platform, then return through the tube. Carry on to the next tube and head towards the tube in the right wall but furthest south. Press on through another tube until you come to a clearing. Use the transformation platform, Sing to activate the wheel and then retransform to head back. Now you are able to pass through the tube that was once engulfed in flames. Once you are through, transform back to tackle the puzzle.

Now connect the matchsticks past the bridge and use Sing to activate the final lightbulb.

You are now free to head towards your final performance!

The Forest Quartet is now available on Steam.