The only sense of dread I felt from this game was when I anticipated going through another endless woods level shooting 50 copies of one enemy in exactly the same way.
Comparing this to Twin Peaks because it's a Pacific Northwest small town mystery is like comparing tea to piss because both are a yellow liquid. Barebones worldbuilding and mythology, story just cobbled from random plotlines of Stephen King novels.
There's nothing to find in the world, I peaced out after 3 hours, and haven't found a single interesting detail or exploration hook in any of the levels. Twin Peaks is all about building a weird world from many pieces, and Alan Wake just blindly copies the broad strokes and doesn't do any of the legwork.
There's an awful decision to pad out the lore with manuscript pages and radio broadcasts, that you have to stand in one place to listen to. Most of the game you're just running through barren woods, and they couldn't even do you the favor of making these lore-dumps listenable in transit.
Gameplay-wise, one of the most boring games I've ever played. The only thing you get to do in the levels is shoot one type of "zombie" with some of the worst designed gunplay in gaming history.
When you're not doing that, you're walking. Through uninspired, repetitive levels with nothing in them. This "horror" game doesn't attempt to scare you or create atmosphere in any way during these passages, they're just long and empty.
The level I quit on had the premise of Alan running from the cops, and it consists of you simply leisurely jogging through the woods while police lights and radio chatter bob in the distance. That is all. There are no mechanics involved, no attempt to ramp up the drama.
I haven't played Max Payne when I was a kid, and came to Alan Wake from Control, which is one of my favorite games of all time. I'm truly shocked that these two games were made by the same team, by the same author. Control rights everything that is wrong with Alan Wake, so I guess hooray for personal and creative growth for everyone involved.
Comparing this to Twin Peaks because it's a Pacific Northwest small town mystery is like comparing tea to piss because both are a yellow liquid. Barebones worldbuilding and mythology, story just cobbled from random plotlines of Stephen King novels.
There's nothing to find in the world, I peaced out after 3 hours, and haven't found a single interesting detail or exploration hook in any of the levels. Twin Peaks is all about building a weird world from many pieces, and Alan Wake just blindly copies the broad strokes and doesn't do any of the legwork.
There's an awful decision to pad out the lore with manuscript pages and radio broadcasts, that you have to stand in one place to listen to. Most of the game you're just running through barren woods, and they couldn't even do you the favor of making these lore-dumps listenable in transit.
Gameplay-wise, one of the most boring games I've ever played. The only thing you get to do in the levels is shoot one type of "zombie" with some of the worst designed gunplay in gaming history.
When you're not doing that, you're walking. Through uninspired, repetitive levels with nothing in them. This "horror" game doesn't attempt to scare you or create atmosphere in any way during these passages, they're just long and empty.
The level I quit on had the premise of Alan running from the cops, and it consists of you simply leisurely jogging through the woods while police lights and radio chatter bob in the distance. That is all. There are no mechanics involved, no attempt to ramp up the drama.
I haven't played Max Payne when I was a kid, and came to Alan Wake from Control, which is one of my favorite games of all time. I'm truly shocked that these two games were made by the same team, by the same author. Control rights everything that is wrong with Alan Wake, so I guess hooray for personal and creative growth for everyone involved.