Story and Characters
-Alan Wake is a fairly interesting character that is flawed, but also occasionally charming. He is a writer and can be arrogant at times, but he is also trying to save his wife and he is likable enough.
-Most of the side characters in the game are fairly basic and are not very fleshed out. Barry, Alan’s agent, is one of the main side characters and he is probably the most likable character in the game.
-Some of the side characters like Thomas Zane or Agent Nightingale could have used a bit more development as it is hard to truly understand them and their motivations unless you do research outside of the game.
-The story is an intriguing one that can be hard to follow at times, but it certainly feels unique. There are some aspects of the game that I feel were not addressed clearly enough, but for the most part the story is structured in a way that the player can follow. The ending feels very vague however and I would have liked something a bit more definitive.
Gameplay
-The gameplay is the weakest aspect of the game unfortunately. The combat can feel very tedious at times even though it is a unique idea to fight enemies with both guns and a flashlight. The combat starts feeling quite repetitive though because there is a lack of enemy variety and a lack of weapons or any sort of weapon upgrades. The guns don’t feel all that different and neither do the flashlights. Almost every chapter ends with you losing your weapons so you are constantly just getting the same weapons back again, but they all feel the same.
-The dodge mechanic in the game is very frustrating as the timing feels off on when you should do it. Oftentimes, you need to dodge well before the attack is near you which feels off.
-The enemy spawns are atrocious and are one of the worst aspects of the game. They will spawn behind you constantly and sometimes they spawn directly behind you so you are guaranteed to be hit. Sometimes the enemies will hit you two or three times in a row and you are unable to move until they finish attacking you. This leads to many frustrating deaths that feel cheap because the player didn’t do anything wrong.
-There are not really any puzzles or much gameplay outside of the basic combat, so the frustrations that come from the combat are magnified. The movement can also feel clunky at times and it is frustrating how quickly Alan will lose the ability to sprint and how much faster all of the enemies are than you.
-The game also has possessed objects that will throw themselves at you which also can lead to a lot of unavoidable damage as there is no way to destroy them all in time or avoid them. That is the biggest frustration with the game for me, there are too many times I would be hit or killed and it was because of bad gameplay mechanics, not necessarily because I made a mistake.
Side Content
-The game is mostly quite linear and there is no side content featured. The closest thing might be looking around the map for collectibles or extra ammo, but that doesn’t really count.
World/Level Design
-This is the game’s biggest strength as the map and town of Bright Falls are quite aesthetically pleasing and the game does a great job nailing that Northwestern United States vibe. Each location that you visit feels detailed and they all made sense to be in a small town. The game has a creepy, but beautiful atmosphere that works very well.
-One downside with the level design is that there are often areas that are quite large that the player can explore, but they don’t often have any purpose. The game gives you plenty of ammo and resources, so you don’t really feel a need to explore, but I also didn’t like the feeling of skipping over content. This issue was particularly prominent when you are in the car and can get in and out of your vehicle whenever you want. There are many locations you drive past on your way to your final destination and it can be hard to tell what is worth stopping by and what should be skipped.
Graphics, Music and Glitches
-When playing the remaster of Alan Wake I did not encounter any major bugs which was great.
-The graphics for the environments are good and the character models in this version have been updated from the original so they do look better, but obviously still worse than a new game released recently. I wouldn’t say any of the visuals are anything too remarkable, but it is a good looking remaster that allows the game to hold up pretty well in 2023.
-The music for the game is rather good and adds to the ambience and danger of the story. The soundtrack rarely ever really stood out to me as anything too incredible, but it complimented the game well.
Main Positives of the Game
-The setting of the game and the overall vibes of a small town in Washington really worked for me and it made the game enjoyable even when the combat was frustrating.
-The story is very unique and while at times it was a bit too convoluted, it managed to remain interesting throughout the game and I enjoyed following it.
-I do like how unique this game is with its meta narrative, some fun characters and a different combat system using light, there is nothing out there quite like it. This does not mean the game is amazing, but I like to see games do something different from most other games out there.
Main Negatives of the Game
-The combat can be repetitive at times and also very frustrating. The enemy spawns are awful and will often leave you being hit or killed without you doing anything wrong. The dodge feels a bit janky and does not work well when you are being attacked by multiple enemies.
-The story can be a bit too hard to follow at times and does not really wrap up in a way that feels satisfactory.
-Some characters feel underdeveloped and their motivations are not fully clear. For example, Agent Nightingale is relentlessly hunting Alan Wake, but it is not really clear why and I didn’t find out until I looked up more about his character after I beat the game. It could be that I missed a document that explained his motivations, but for a character that is as prominent as he is, I think his motivations should’ve been more clear.
-There is not a lot of enemy variety which again leads to the repetition with the combat.
-Large areas that can be explored, but the player does not always know when they should be or do they have much incentive to do so.
Overall Score: 7/10
-Alan Wake is a fairly interesting character that is flawed, but also occasionally charming. He is a writer and can be arrogant at times, but he is also trying to save his wife and he is likable enough.
-Most of the side characters in the game are fairly basic and are not very fleshed out. Barry, Alan’s agent, is one of the main side characters and he is probably the most likable character in the game.
-Some of the side characters like Thomas Zane or Agent Nightingale could have used a bit more development as it is hard to truly understand them and their motivations unless you do research outside of the game.
-The story is an intriguing one that can be hard to follow at times, but it certainly feels unique. There are some aspects of the game that I feel were not addressed clearly enough, but for the most part the story is structured in a way that the player can follow. The ending feels very vague however and I would have liked something a bit more definitive.
Gameplay
-The gameplay is the weakest aspect of the game unfortunately. The combat can feel very tedious at times even though it is a unique idea to fight enemies with both guns and a flashlight. The combat starts feeling quite repetitive though because there is a lack of enemy variety and a lack of weapons or any sort of weapon upgrades. The guns don’t feel all that different and neither do the flashlights. Almost every chapter ends with you losing your weapons so you are constantly just getting the same weapons back again, but they all feel the same.
-The dodge mechanic in the game is very frustrating as the timing feels off on when you should do it. Oftentimes, you need to dodge well before the attack is near you which feels off.
-The enemy spawns are atrocious and are one of the worst aspects of the game. They will spawn behind you constantly and sometimes they spawn directly behind you so you are guaranteed to be hit. Sometimes the enemies will hit you two or three times in a row and you are unable to move until they finish attacking you. This leads to many frustrating deaths that feel cheap because the player didn’t do anything wrong.
-There are not really any puzzles or much gameplay outside of the basic combat, so the frustrations that come from the combat are magnified. The movement can also feel clunky at times and it is frustrating how quickly Alan will lose the ability to sprint and how much faster all of the enemies are than you.
-The game also has possessed objects that will throw themselves at you which also can lead to a lot of unavoidable damage as there is no way to destroy them all in time or avoid them. That is the biggest frustration with the game for me, there are too many times I would be hit or killed and it was because of bad gameplay mechanics, not necessarily because I made a mistake.
Side Content
-The game is mostly quite linear and there is no side content featured. The closest thing might be looking around the map for collectibles or extra ammo, but that doesn’t really count.
World/Level Design
-This is the game’s biggest strength as the map and town of Bright Falls are quite aesthetically pleasing and the game does a great job nailing that Northwestern United States vibe. Each location that you visit feels detailed and they all made sense to be in a small town. The game has a creepy, but beautiful atmosphere that works very well.
-One downside with the level design is that there are often areas that are quite large that the player can explore, but they don’t often have any purpose. The game gives you plenty of ammo and resources, so you don’t really feel a need to explore, but I also didn’t like the feeling of skipping over content. This issue was particularly prominent when you are in the car and can get in and out of your vehicle whenever you want. There are many locations you drive past on your way to your final destination and it can be hard to tell what is worth stopping by and what should be skipped.
Graphics, Music and Glitches
-When playing the remaster of Alan Wake I did not encounter any major bugs which was great.
-The graphics for the environments are good and the character models in this version have been updated from the original so they do look better, but obviously still worse than a new game released recently. I wouldn’t say any of the visuals are anything too remarkable, but it is a good looking remaster that allows the game to hold up pretty well in 2023.
-The music for the game is rather good and adds to the ambience and danger of the story. The soundtrack rarely ever really stood out to me as anything too incredible, but it complimented the game well.
Main Positives of the Game
-The setting of the game and the overall vibes of a small town in Washington really worked for me and it made the game enjoyable even when the combat was frustrating.
-The story is very unique and while at times it was a bit too convoluted, it managed to remain interesting throughout the game and I enjoyed following it.
-I do like how unique this game is with its meta narrative, some fun characters and a different combat system using light, there is nothing out there quite like it. This does not mean the game is amazing, but I like to see games do something different from most other games out there.
Main Negatives of the Game
-The combat can be repetitive at times and also very frustrating. The enemy spawns are awful and will often leave you being hit or killed without you doing anything wrong. The dodge feels a bit janky and does not work well when you are being attacked by multiple enemies.
-The story can be a bit too hard to follow at times and does not really wrap up in a way that feels satisfactory.
-Some characters feel underdeveloped and their motivations are not fully clear. For example, Agent Nightingale is relentlessly hunting Alan Wake, but it is not really clear why and I didn’t find out until I looked up more about his character after I beat the game. It could be that I missed a document that explained his motivations, but for a character that is as prominent as he is, I think his motivations should’ve been more clear.
-There is not a lot of enemy variety which again leads to the repetition with the combat.
-Large areas that can be explored, but the player does not always know when they should be or do they have much incentive to do so.
Overall Score: 7/10