Killer storytelling and creative demon slaying make the haunting Alan Wake one for the books.
Darkness is a powerful force. Not knowing what lies beyond the safety of the light can be absolutely terrifying to those with an overactive imagination. But fearful fantasy turns deadly in the bucolic town of Bright Falls, Washington, where the whispering shadows hold untold horrors that reach out from the darkness. Alan Wake spins into an intensely atmospheric psychological thriller that bends the barrier between reality and fiction until it snaps, delivering a chilling story-driven experience without leaning too heavily on schlocky gore. With a beautifully updated graphics engine and free pack-in downloadable content that fills in some of the gaps left by the original's cliff-hanger ending, the PC version is worth the long wait.
For successful big-city writer Alan Wake, a much-needed vacation to the remote countryside turns nightmarish as he is beset by demonic beasts and haunted by a malevolent paranormal presence that seeks to destroy him. When Wake's wife goes missing from their lakeside cabin retreat, he sets out into the dark woods to find her and winds up a protagonist in his own horror novel--one he doesn't remember ever writing. Unfolding across six TV-show-like episodes, the main story features top-notch suspense packed with memorable characters, humorous moments, bizarre plot twists, and an abundance of eeriness. Wake's narration of each freaky event as it unfolds in and around Bright Falls weaves an inner monologue laced with self-doubt and disbelief. It makes him an intriguing, troubled character and serves as one of many effective storytelling mechanics put into play.
Manuscript pages found scattered throughout each chapter flesh out the tale in other ways too, offering backstory and perspective on the creepy town, its people, and what's happening to them. These snippets of narrative text are most potent when they describe horrific foreshadowed events that have yet to happen to Wake. It's pleasantly nerve-racking to pick up a page that describes a gruesome encounter only to realize a few minutes later that you've just stumbled into the setting where its about to take place. Alan Wake's classy horror vibe relies on escalating tension and building suspense to keep you hooked. You might not jump out of your chair outright, but expect sweaty palms and general anxiousness at every turn on the gripping trek through this unsettling tale.
Bright Falls is anything but--the gloomy mountainside town is a patchwork of gas stations, a small downtown with shops and houses, a radio station, a sawmill, an abandoned farm, underground mines, scattered pockets of communities, and lots of wilderness. It's an isolated place cloaked in dark mystery, which provides a fitting, rural setting for the supernatural adventure to play out. Exploring the diverse terrain through each distinct area, often with little more than a flashlight or dim lamp in the distance to light the way, is simply captivating. These remote vistas were hauntingly beautiful on the Xbox 360, but the extra visual details, enhanced lighting, and overall crispness found in the PC version make it even more impressive. While some of the character animations feel a little jerky and dated at times, the tightly crafted presentation gives off a great moody atmosphere.
More than just a thematic hook to hang the journey on, light and darkness are integral components of Alan Wake's unique combat system. The demonically possessed entities that come howling out of the woods at Wake are sensitive to light. Using flares, flashlights, flashbang grenades, and other sources of bright illumination is the only way to hold them at bay and weaken the beasts enough to finish them off with a revolver, shotgun, hunting rifle, or another conventional weapon you pick up along the way. Other times light alone suffices, like when murders of crows swarm at you from the skies or when inanimate objects suddenly spring to life and hurtle toward you fueled by raw evil.
Thankfully, venturing off the obvious path reveals secret stashes to help in the fight. Scrounging every hiding spot for ammo and batteries turns into an obsession, and the stretches where these precious resources dwindle often lead to moments of panic-stricken chaos as you frantically try to dodge and weave your way to the nearest light source to escape being ripped apart. Since stopping foes requires a sustained blast of light that drains your flashlight, you're often forced to use it conservatively while also tackling large gangs of insidious creatures. This injects tension into every surprise encounter. It's a great, crafty battle system, even if the initial thrill it provides wanes slightly further in the game when such encounters become more predictable.
In addition to the main story campaign, the PC version includes two DLC installments, The Signal and The Writer, that serve as a two-part continuation of the main plot and delve deeper into Wake's troubled psyche with a more surreal take on the twisted world he finds himself in. While the DLC gets off to a predictable start reminiscent of the main game, the second half breaks out of the box with weirder environments and a climactic conclusion. Even if they don't add much in terms of fresh gameplay, these story-expanding diversions do set things up for an eventual proper sequel and are absolutely worth playing.
Alan Wake feels right at home on the PC. While it retains some of the repetitive elements of the original console version, it does look prettier, and the extra content free of charge is a welcome addition to the package. Even the minor flaws are forgivable when you soak in the heady ambiance and get caught up in the foreboding current of this spook story. Killer storytelling, creative combat, and some of the slickest horror atmosphere you can find in a game make this supernatural showdown a memorable excursion to the dark side.
I was really enjoying this up to episode 3. Then it just gets infuriating. Two especially tough encounters back to back equals rage, not a satisfying challenge. I hate games that make me so frustrated I have to take breaks. It kills the flow, which in a story driven game, is just plain stupid. We'll see if the rest of the game redeems itself. When my nerd rage subsides.
Awesome game, shame there arent more like it. Scary and atmospheric in the beginning but if they made enemies more powerful and less numerous it wouldnt get so repetitive by the end. The story was a bit confusing and the manuscript pages had spoilers (thats why i didnt read them until i finished the level) but overall its excellent.
@mddma The manuscript pages aren't spoilers, they are part of the game. It's an intentional storytelling technique intended to foreshadow.
Looks really really good with my new OC i7 + GTX 680 with all settings maxed... Super pretty and atmospheric game.. Definitely worth just experiencing the world.
"Encounters grow repetitive by the end"
Pretty sure there are basically only 3 kind of enemies. The shadow guys being the most common. So the encounters feel repetitive after the 2nd chapter, not the end. Good game, but it could have used more kind of enemies like some comments said.
Strange GS didn't highlight this negative point in the X360 version.
I've played the game, it is amazing, but the graphics isn't that good to be honest, I felt so!!
This game doesn't really do it for me. It's a well made game with a good storyline and creates a good atmosphere. Just found the gameplay really boring and repetitive. The game is totally linear. It's just a case of following the 1 path available through the game, fighting off a few badies on the way and watching the videos inbetween. There's no thinking involved with this game either, the game just tells you exactly what to do and where to go at every stage. Good, well made game if you like that sort of thing but I much prefer open world style game play with variety, choice and where the player has to figure things out. Only played about half the game and was thoroughly bored with it.
Cool game. A bit pretentious, sometimes, but it has really well written lines (not the manuscript pages, they suck). And it's best console port I've seen in eons
@j4x2020 Why do "they suck"? Can you back up your criticism or can you safely be ignored?
@wavelength121 @j4x2020 Can't really recall 'why' after all that time, but I guess it's very subjective anyway. Still better love story than twilight tho.
the last horror game i had play was alone in the dark 4 and i can tell you was much better than this.and what a terrble ending........
3 Like The story in this game is outstanding! The game is great from start to finish with enough mind bending and emotion to keep you gripped! I recommend it to anybody !
@PC-lovers95 Play it with default controls, but you need to change the manuscript pages control and make it left alt instead of F5 button,beside the game with its deafult controls is easy to control the game.Hope you enjoy a great game.
3 Like Very atmospheric enviroment, creepy with nice graphics and epic story! Really great game!!!
2 Like the nailed it with the repetitiveness towards the end, the game only has two types of enemies all together, it could have used more, some demon dogs or stuff...but otherwise good atmosfere mostly, gave it 8.5 as well
7 Like I played an hour , very cool atmosphere, reminds me of Stephen King's novels. I remember how bad I sweared Remedy when they announced years ago they decided to abandon the pc version. Now I know why;)
1 Like just played it couple of hours ago.. it was a very engaging experience! nice job fr remedy putting it on PC! now can't wait for max payne 3
1 Like Very Max Payne like...shouldn't be a suprise since it's from the same developer but it really reminded me how much I loved those games
6 Like If you're playing games for their single player experience and their story, than you're in the right place and you'll absolutely love the Bright Falls!
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1 Like @lorddaggeroff @omgmike23 Shutup troll. It's Remedy's product, not yours. They can do whatever they like to it and are not obligated to explain anything. Go back to your private world where game companies exist to kiss your butt. Besides, Alan Wake is a great game and works fine as a linear shooter.
1 Like AW while very good looking and the atmosphere is good has some basic flaw. Its unbelievable boring. The gameplay is exactly as shallow as mainstream console "handbook" dictates which is a bad thing to be honest. Neither my brother nor i could force ourselves to play the dlc after the main game. There is virtually nothing to do. Its a casual corridor PRESS X(start generator, open door) game with the same repetitive combat encounters over and over again ad nauseum. Actually I wished during my playthrough it would be SHORTER which is not very often. THe Gamyspy 6/10 is one i completely agree with. ITs a case of wasted potential. Great gfx and interesting story but the gameplay is nearly unbearable after few hours after you played enough of "PRESS X". I would rate it as many oscar movies. Its a good game/movie but a horribly boring one.
@lorddaggeroff what are you 12? Alan Wake is an AWESOME single player experience, I don't know about anyone else but im getting quite sick of mediocre campaign only to have an even more mediocre multiplayer. Alan wake has A VERY COMPELLING campaign and that's what they were focused on, they didn't have their mind split between a crappy story and a crappy multiplayer. Nuff Said.
A really superb single-player experience from the guys at remedy. I played the 360 version and now the PC!!! The added visual improvements sure add greater value to the pc version. Of course you also get the developer commentary, which is great!!!
this game is awesome I played it on xbox360 and on pc glad to play with better graphics on pc, but I think plays better with a controller than keyboard and mouse, I tried both on pc
1 Like been playing it a little bit at a time. It's amazing so far, I haven't played a game like this in a long time.
2 Like I didn't know this was coming out until a week before. Made me very happy. I finished it and it's an excellent game all around (great controls, visuals, story). Wake's voice actor is a bit flat and it can get a bit repetitive at some parts but not annoyingly so... and $30 for this quality is a great price. If you are into this kind of game then you'll probably like it.
The controls are fine with KB & M. At least they are after you figure out that "w" doesn't move you straight where the camera is facing but where Alan is facing. Takes a little getting used to.
finished it 2 yrs ago with my 360 !!! now im surprised that they finally managed to release it for pc !!!
There is a good plot here somewhere, but horrible combat and cheap scares bury it.
