Alan Wake is a very creative game in a genre where creativity was sparse at the time of its release.

The combat revolves around making enemies vulnerable with a light source, primarily your flashlight, and then taking them with the gun of choice. However combat can get rough when packs of enemies are swarming you all at once, especially if you don’t have a flare on you.

Character models look fine, except for the facial movement, which can be off putting.

There’s lots of characters in the plot, but none of them do much nor does anyone really get any growth or development.

The level design is fine and the environments themselves look great, when you can actually see them. Levels can get very dark, and even with the flashlight it can be frustrating trying to figure out where you are and where to go.

The plot doesn’t make sense most of the time, but it makes sense that it doesn’t make sense? No spoilers, just trust me.

While not a perfect game, if the concepts behind Alan Wake interest you, I’d definitely recommend a playthrough.