(REPOST) MadCap's Game Reviews - "Alan Wake"

Xbox 360 Box Art

Alan Wake is what is created when you pour large helpings of the Twilight Zone, the films of Alfred Hitchcock, and the writings of Stephen King into a pot and let it simmer for ten years before serving it. Granted, that doesn’t mean it’s a bad thing. The chef serving up this delicious psychological gumbo is Remedy Games, known for the Max Payne series (which I haven’t played) and the owner of the cafeteria is Microsoft Game Studios, so get your trays ready.

Alan Wake vs. The Army of Darkness. No, seriously.

All lunchroom metaphors aside, I liked Alan Wake. All in all, it is exactly what it claims to be – a psychological survival horror game. The story is a very Shining-esque affair in which a famous writer by the name of Alan Wake comes to a scenic little town in the Pacific Northwest with his wife (who has some of the worst lip-synching I’ve ever seen) for a getaway to perhaps break the latest case of writer’s block he has had. And then a dark, evil unknowable force captures his wife and forces Alan to pick up a flashlight and a six-shooter to rescue her.

The gameplay reminds me of Silent Hill, but not so shakily painful. Alan is apparently to a degree proficient (as far as I know) with the various weapons he comes across on his romps through the dark woods as he fights the cosmic horrors that abound through the game world. It seems realistic enough, Alan is a writer after all, not a power-armored space marine who’s able to blast off a shadow monster’s head from across the forest with perfect accuracy with a single shot. The realistic factor helps to make the game tenser and gives the real feeling of a normal man facing down an evil far greater than he. That being said, why does the camera jerk around spasmodically when I press the right analog stick? Especially during the vehicle sections, this saw me fishtailing like crazy when I attempted to reverse myself in a way that did not lead off of cliffs.

All in all, the game has great atmosphere. However, the reasons for Alan to be running around in the woods at night soon become ridiculous and (especially later in the game) time seems to go from day to night almost arbitrarily quickly. Alan is also amazingly able to lose everything he’s acquired from previous levels (forcing me to part with the beloved shotgun), which ups the feel of danger even in the lowest difficulty setting. Top tip for veterans of shooters, the “Nightmare” difficulty is called so for a reason, but that’s likely where you’ll find the most challenge.

So all in all, the game is solid. The shooting works well and the storyline was enough to keep me interested until the end, so I suppose that’s all I can ask for. I am eager for the sequel, because the ending left me confused and wanting more. Of course, if it ends up being like certain Stephen King movies (LANGOLIERS!!!), I will be sadly disappointed. So, Remedy, take this to note, fix the camera for vehicle sections, and give us a good ending!

Alan Wake is now available from Remedy Games and Microsoft Game Studios for Xbox 360.