Alan Wake, that moment when you realize you’re living in a horror novel.
I’ve had this game for a long time, but never took the time to actually play it until recently. In fact, I only really remembered I needed to play the game when it was mentioned as an Easter egg in Control.
I think I passed on playing it for so long because it’s a shooter game, and it sort of looked like it was the horror side of the genre spectrum–though I now see it’s really not, though the label is still there. It certainly doesn’t have any jump-scares. Still, I’m not that great at shooter games and they tend to stress me out.
But I’m trying to play more of them!
Thus, I played this one–an all-time favorite among a lot of gamers.
- Developed by Remedy Entertainment
- Published by Remedy Entertainment
PC
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Xbox 360
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Alan Wake Gameplay
If you’re going into the gameplay thinking it’s going to be a shooter with a lot of action, don’t bother playing this game.
And I know that’s odd to say now days, because a ton of gamers have probably already played the game because normally if it’s talked about, it does have its high praises. But someone came up to me while I was in the middle of gameplay and asked if I thought it was slow and boring.
First off, yes, it’s pretty slow.
Second, yes, it can be boring, because the shooting and running portions are kind of monotonous. It’s the same enemies, just variations of strength and speed.
But when you think about the game’s really about, it’s all the story. After all, we have an author who’s stuck in the nightmare of his own story. So of course we’re trying to figure out what’s going on as he tries to save his wife from the dark being that taunts him about her death, when really he’s in control of the story.
Which means you’ll find pages of manuscripts about and read them. This slows the game down.
Despite all that, the gameplay consists of using mainly using a flashlight as a weapon to attack the darkness coating the enemies. It won’t kill them, but it’ll make them more vulnerable to attack. Your other weapons available are flashbangs, flares, and different types of guns.
Aside from humans coming after you, there are also possessed objects to take into consideration, as well as flocks of birds. You know, normal things you find in a horror novel.
Alan Wake Navigation
Navigating through the game is pretty straight-forward, but there are parts where you can wander off the trail to find different items in somewhat hidden locations or off the beaten path. Normally, there will be yellow arrows or splotches of yellow to notify if you’re near a chest.
Aside from that, really it’s a typical one-direction path, unless you prefer wandering around in hostile territory.
Alan Wake Soundtrack
I love how the endings of the chapters have their own music to play. It makes for a really nice touch.
In-game, the different sound effects the game has to offer are perfect. From the different weapons you use against enemies to the environmental details of trees and wind and your own footsteps. It really adds to the eeriness of an area, or the trepidation of something about to happen.
Alan Wake Graphics
I will say the background of this game is great. It’s held up well over the years.
But don’t expect to be very impressed by the character models or some of the cutscenes. Lip-syncing is off and the character models aren’t perfect, but still…for 2012, things look really good.
As far as items that you can collect from areas off the beaten path, they do glow if they’re manuscripts and they also have an occasional shine to them if they’re something like the Thermos products. Of course there are also radios and TVs, but you need to actually look for them.
Alan Wake Final Thoughts
I don’t particularly like shooter games, but I thought this one was fun, mainly because it wasn’t intense. All the reading of manuscript pages and talking with the locals and the cutscenes kind of take away the panic that one might feel in an action shooter.
I wasn’t as stressed as I usually would’ve been when playing a game to survive.
I also thought the storyline wasn’t such a bad one. But the ending…it kind of threw me for a loop.
