Alan Wake is a game that wears its influences boldly on its sleeve. It’s a story about a horror writer who is plunged into a real-life horror tale, and the first two words you hear are “Stephen King”. The shadow of King looms large throughout the proceedings. On many occasions I found myself recognising nods to The Dark Half, Misery or The Shining (one sequence takes place within a garden maze). The plot sees Wake trying to solve the mystery behind the disappearance of his wife while on vacation in the idyllic town of Bright Falls, while the author is plagued by blackouts and visions of characters from his new book – which he doesn’t even remember writing – coming to life.
The story itself is good enough, although it’s let down by a disappointing ending that’s all but nonsensical (to me, at least). There will apparently be a downloadable epilogue available at the end of July, so I’m hoping that will clear things up a bit. The voice acting is good throughout, and there is some nice characterisation, even for minor players such as the inexplicable FBI agent who seems to be there for no other reason but to take a shot at folks every now and again. Everything looks fantastic, with the darkness and shadows that serve as the title’s major USP rendered and used to great effect.
The game was once meant to have adopted a wide-open, sandbox approach to gameplay, but the end result is in fact dreadfully linear, with no real feeling that you’re influencing events. At times it comes across as a long, moderately interactive cut scene rather than a fully-fledged game. However, when Alan Wake does work, it does so brilliantly. There are a few set pieces that are terrifically exciting – like the outstanding sequence that takes place on an abandoned rock festival stage – and offer genuine standout moments. Most importantly, though, the atmosphere is superbly unsettling throughout, and I don’t mind admitting to having had a nightmare that was clearly triggered by playing this game!
Other reviewers hailed Alan Wake as a classic. I wouldn’t go that far. It’s good, sometimes very good indeed, but is held back by some of the flaws noted above.
MORE REVIEWS
Bookmark this post with: