flawed but probably one of remedy's best games yet.

i think i should probably mention right off the bat how much of a buggy mess this game is at launch, even on my SSD shit would just not load in. i fell through the world a lot. (fitting?) combat can feel frustrating against certain enemies, and the fact that enemies respawn constantly can make the prospect of exploring and finding the collectibles and side content feel like more of a risk than a benefit. i feel like wake's and anderson's mechanics are very underutilized. wake's story in particular feels... underwhelming and confusing at best, totally pointless at worst? the story overall (especially the ending) can feel very underwhelming at times, to be honest. alan wake ii is definitely a game that tries to do a LOT at once, and that leaves it feeling kind of messy or half-baked sometimes, especially its meta-narrative bits.
EDIT: i almost forgot to mention this game is littered with obnoxious jumpscare overlays in certain sections. it's very annoying and detracts from the experience more than anything in my opinion.


all that being said, i really loved this game. even with the weird bugs and technical issues, this game is fucking gorgeous and i had to take multiple pauses just to take in some of the areas and rooms in this game. compared to their previous games, the combat is definitely still a step above and typically feels pretty satisfying. and for all my gripes with the story, it's on a completely different level compared to everything else remedy has put out. wonderful game