'Alan Wake II' Review: A Horror Masterpiece

Nothing compares to Remedy Entertainment's Alan Wake II . Alan Wake II is a tense, slow-paced, acidic horror journey through the eyes of protagonist Alan Wake and the Anderson Saga at the pinnacle of the survival horror genre.

If that sounds like high praise, it's because it's a very good game. It takes not only its predecessor Alan Wake , but everything in Remedy's catalog - the old one - and creates a truly unique gaming experience unlike anything offered by its contemporaries in the genre.

Alan Wake II launched on October 27, and I was very impressed with the 14 hours I played – about 70 percent of the game. In a month filled with big hits like Marvel's Spider-Man 2 and Super Mario Bros. Surprisingly , it was Alan Wake II that caught my attention.

You will never feel safe

Alan Wake II's inspiration spans all genres and media, creating a game that feels both familiar and unique. From Twin Peaks- inspired cities to crime-ridden New York, Games to World offers players landscapes that are a feast for the eyes.

The game takes place 13 years after its predecessor, as FBI agent Saga Anderson travels to the fictional town of Bright Falls, Washington, to investigate several disappearances and murders that have occurred in the town. Meanwhile, Alan Wake attempts to write himself from dark space—a true alternate reality beyond time and space that art can embody—beneath Lake Cauldron in Shining Falls.

Players can switch between the two main characters at any time, with their world offering different styles and tones. Both areas are small, compact and technological wonders worth experiencing. As Saga, players are introduced to a procedural and investigative detective story, while Wake falls into the trap of a horror film mixed with an unfortunate Art Deco style. Keeping the story slow is an obvious choice by Remedy to keep players interested in the characters and mystery.

The main mechanic of the game, which plays a crucial role in this detective story, is the story board, which can be accessed from Saga's Mind Place - a kind of half-time menu, where players can deviate from the main quest quest and prepare various side quests. . Available in other cities and regions. It's a unique way to track character progress, but it doesn't require players to use it to understand how to progress the plot. This allows players to assemble their own containers while exploring the environments on offer without getting hands-on with the game.

This is a good thing, because the game demands the player's attention as they slowly make their way through the picturesque town of Bright Falls and the surrounding areas of the Water and Cauldron Lakes. Set in the Pacific Northwest and throughout the region, Saga is interesting because its environments feel natural and authentic, while being able to tell its stories of environmental improvement. As you wander through the woods outside the city as your investigation continues, the sound design and level of detail ensure that you never feel unsafe. There's always an ominous feeling of doom once you leave the safe haven, which makes for an interesting journey as you progress through the game.

In stark contrast to the green and beautiful views of the sparkling waterfalls, it's a nightmarish version of Alan Wake's New York City. This version of New York, a seedy and dirty place, feels like being stuck in an art museum for hours. Each building is carefully placed, as if the city were on display in memory of its captive inhabitants. This area is very detailed and dense, from street trash to graffiti with messages left behind. An urban environment filled with broken streetlights and dirty neon lights leads Alan to his next destination. Compared to the strange charm of Shining Falls, the world of Nightmare New York is grittier, a city inspired by right-wing fantasy like Death Wish and the like.

The world design is the best part of Alan Wake II . It's small, it's intimate, and it tells hundreds of stories before you say a single word. It has an atmosphere that even the most immersive simulation games don't have, and it allows Remedy to do very weird and meta things with its genre and world choice themes.

Now is hunting season

You've spent a lot of time exploring the world of Alan Wake II , but what about the gameplay? This is good . If you've played any of the Resident Evil remakes, you've played Alan Wake II . That's not to say the gameplay is bad, it's actually pretty solid, but combat is clearly not Remedy's focus.

Each weapon has a good weight when shooting. The basic gameplay is anything but boring, as your character shines a light on enemies and runs towards them before escaping from his dark shield. It features excellent audio design that creates a sense of hearing when shooting at enemy weak points. However, the weapon options for both characters are very limited, and the variety of enemies is very small. "Taken" has 3-4 different types, there is a large variant, a melee variant, and a long range variant. While the game says there are different ways to interact with each, from my experience with the game, it's very inconsistent and most of the enemies are bullet sponges.

The upper part is especially highlighted. While the bosses are still of the "point and shoot" variety, they introduce interesting visual and thematic areas not found in the game as players enter the "overlap" between the real world and dark space. From the way combat is designed, Remedy recognizes that most things can go wrong, rarely enters combat, and rarely faces more than one or two enemies. face to face

Alan's side of the game is tighter and less focused. Instead of the usual enemy encounters in a swamp, Nightmare New York is full of shadowy silhouettes that may or may not be trying to lure you in. This game forces you to get up close and personal with them as they whisper and scream your name. Some shadows will cling to you and others will attack you outright, and Alan will never know until it's too late. This leads to interesting encounters as you progress through the story, and it's clear that Remedy is more about creating a sense of dread in the player's world than just being a horror-filled shooter. It greatly improved upon its predecessor, Alan Wake, with improved combat mechanics and sleek graphics, making it the cheap action horror game of the 2000s.

This is the main thing

Often times in games of this genre, the story is secondary to the combat, but Alan Wake II takes a different approach by grounding itself in a cohesive world without engaging the player too much. In every game, Remedy tries to combine gameplay and story. Alan Wake - a story within a story - tells you how things will unfold, Max Payne is heavy on interactive internal monologues, and Control is a learning-rich story that rewards the player for exploration. It all comes together to create Remedy's masterpiece, Alan Wake II is the culmination of decades of experience and game design. Needless to say, its performance works almost perfectly, except for rare visual flaws.

With this review of the game made possible thanks to Remedy and Epic Games' review code, I don't want to talk too much about the story beyond the bare plot. Because you have to try it first and all I can say about it is understand how effective it is. Video games have never been a bastion of good writing except in rare cases, and they just happen. But Alan Wake II is a story worth rewatching multiple times — it's a unique blend of meta commentary, live action, and musical additions that creates a story that can't be told in any other format, media, or genre — and it takes many plays to understand and appreciate. Alan Wake II touches on and references Remedy's other games, but it does so in a way that feels familiar to fans of those games, while also welcoming new players into the world.

In an industry full of incomplete, top-notch high-budget video games, it's refreshing to see a polished, near-perfect game released on day one. Remedy's Alan Wake II is not only the studio's best game to date, but it's also one of the best games in the genre, and perhaps the best of the year.

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