Alan Wake is a game that knows exactly what it wants to be and never stops executing that vision. My time with the remastered version and its DLC episodes was a 14-hour roller coaster that I’m sad I didn’t get on sooner. From the outset, it’s easy to notice the Twin Peaks/Stephen King influence. As an enjoyer of both, I would have been more than happy to take that at face value and run. Coming into Alan Wake, that was the only frame of reference I had been given (especially Twin Peaks). Instead, Remedy Entertainment blends the metanarrative, story-comes-alive, writer-protagonist King-isms with the environmental quirkiness of late 80’s David Lynch and uses them as tools to their own ends. The pulpy episodic structure always ends with a big twist or reveal, followed by a licensed track over the title card that will play until you skip or the song ends. This never failed to get an audible “hell yeah” out of me through six chapters. The live-action sequences broadcasted over every TV you walk past lend an authenticity and realism that sucks the player in. The developers have implemented the worldbuilding, structure, and environmental touches with such care that the game is practically begging you to slide into Wake’s tremoring loafers and strap in for the ride.

Remedy’s creativity is on display throughout Alan Wake’s runtime. The game starts with a flashlight and a gun, with the former being the only reliable way to keep the uncontrollable Dark Presence at bay. It never expands much past that basic setup, but the devs did not feel a need to. They prioritized depth over breadth and regularly delivered new mechanical ways to push their own status quo. By the end of the DLC, the player has been utilizing light from multiple sources and defending Wake from the increasingly hostile world he is trapped in.

The story does not feel derivative. On the contrary, it is a thoughtful blend of influence and unique ideas that never felt stale. The story is zany, mysterious, and enthralling enough to make me miss my stop on more than one occasion during morning commutes. The mystery never feels contrived. Each flashback, video, and manuscript page the player comes across feels unified in supporting the story and the characters in it. The twists feel authentic and the worldbuilding never collapses under the weight of Wake’s fracturing psyche. His loss is our gain though. Every new obstacle Wake faces gives the developers opportunities to expand the scope of what he and his enemies are capable of.

The characters range from over-the-top FBI agents to deranged Alan Wake stans to stereotypical New York publishing agents. Each of the characters feels archetypal, but they act as vessels for lore and backstory that drip feed exactly as much information as is needed. The story’s pace keeps the player right at the sweet spot between lore overload and pretentiously obtuse. The dialogue and characterization can be overly serious to the point of being pleasantly goofy (headlined by Wake’s exasperated dropkick of a desk chair). Fans of the Yakuza series would feel right at home in appreciating the occasional tonal whiplash. Like those games, the style just kind of… works. My experience was Wake’s experience and it is a testament to the design of the world, dialog, and narrative structure thoughtfully laid out by Remedy.

Alan Wake is known as a cult classic. Its reputation among niche pockets of the internet is how I heard about it a few years back and it’s why it hasn’t necessarily been at the top of my backlog. It should’ve been. I’m convinced the only reason it still has that label is a lack of exposure to the modern gamer. Thankfully, the sequel has gotten serious buzz in the lead-up and aftermath of the 2023 award season. My first time experiencing the mystery of Bright Springs has left me floored. It wasn’t hard to look past the slightly aged controls, gimmicky first impressions, or any other minor gripes I momentarily felt during my playthrough. I had a blast and the runtime is short enough that no one has an excuse not to give it a try. There’s nothing cult about it. This game is just a classic. It left me craving more and I plan on watching the prequel webseries, reading the novelization, and diving skull first into the sequel as soon as possible.