I've always had a rocky relationship with American Nightmare, and even though I am able to appreciate the work put into what is essentially a low budget Xbox Live Arcade game it still doesn't feel like something I am looking for.
On the positive side they have tightened up the gameplay. We have weapon variety now, Wake doesn't run out of breath after 2 minutes, manuscript pages unlock new and more powerful weapons incentivizing exploration, movement feels more solid, and there is more enemy variety.
Interestingly enough all of the gameplay changes I did like were actually planned for the eventual sequel, but Microsoft didn't pick it up which led to all this being used in the downloadable title.
At the end of the day though - while it is nice that the combat feels crisp, I find it very difficult to get invested in a smaller, combat focused Alan Wake game. I understand why it had to be this way, but something is missing and American Nightmare just doesn't play to the strengths of the series.
On the positive side they have tightened up the gameplay. We have weapon variety now, Wake doesn't run out of breath after 2 minutes, manuscript pages unlock new and more powerful weapons incentivizing exploration, movement feels more solid, and there is more enemy variety.
Interestingly enough all of the gameplay changes I did like were actually planned for the eventual sequel, but Microsoft didn't pick it up which led to all this being used in the downloadable title.
At the end of the day though - while it is nice that the combat feels crisp, I find it very difficult to get invested in a smaller, combat focused Alan Wake game. I understand why it had to be this way, but something is missing and American Nightmare just doesn't play to the strengths of the series.