Alan Wake is a linear third-person
shooter whose atmosphere and story attempt to redeem the frankly
clunky combat. The game proceeds in six episodes (with two additional
DLC episodes that are now included for free). Worth a purchase on
sale if you enjoy a combat-driven interactive movie, but there's not
much replayability (unless you're a collectibles and achievements
fanatic).
Alan's wife, Alice, gets “taken” by
a mysterious “dark presence.” The entire game is spent trying to
release her from its power. Alan is frequently lost, operating on
whim, and not really sure of how to proceed. A writer himself, he
begins researching old legends of Cauldron Lake and the power that
words written there seem to possess. This is really the best part of
the game, as the labyrinth of creation and created and how to balance
what is desired with what is needed leads Alan down an increasingly
dark path (pun intended). As he discovers, he is not alone in his
knowledge of the lake's mysterious power, nor the first to suffer
from it. The supporting cast are varied and colorful characters,
several of whom have their own history with Cauldron Lake.
The atmosphere is suitably dark and
fog-swept at times. Most of the game happens at night, so turn down
your room lights and crank the audio to catch the ambiance (the sound
design is superb). The setting is a unique one: the woods and small
town atmosphere of the Pacific Northwest. The ambiance is captured
nicely, and the woods have thick foliage and dark shadows. Old
logging and mining gear abounds, providing just the right touch of
historical nostalgia and rusty menace. The buildings and architecture
are a mix of rustic, country-style structures (built sturdy to
withstand the harsh winters) other more attractive, modern structures
designed to impress tourists (Cauldron Lake Lodge). The great music
score is the icing on the atmospheric cake: moody but melodic, it
catches the feeling of solitude at night-time haunted by the
supernatural.
A supernatural that is made perhaps
more terrifying by the clunky combat. Shine a light at enemies to
burn away the darkness, then shoot them with whatever weapon you have
to hand. It works well enough, but feels loose and sloppy. The
weapons are few, but do feel different: revolver, shotgun (regular
and pump-action), flare gun, hunting rifle, flares, and flash-bangs.
That's it. They're not all available at the same time, and at the
beginning of each episode, Alan only has a flashlight and a revolver.
So, no matter how good you were with saving up your gear, thinking
there might be a big battle coming up, once the episode ends, you'll
lose it all anyway. The enemies offer little variety. You've got the
standard hatchet-throwing “taken”, the big “taken”, the fast
“taken”, and random flocks of crows that fly out of the sky and
attack Alan. Sometimes random objects (like cars, tires, dumpsters)
will become possessed and attack Alan. With so many creatures that
dwell in the woods of the Pacific Northwest, I expected there might
be a boss fight with a bear or a pack of coyotes, but no.
None of these drawbacks would matter if
the total experience offered by Alan Wake were more than the sum of
its parts. Unfortunately, it isn't. I enjoy it because when I first
played it years ago I had no idea that video games could handle
narrative in this fashion. I'll always have a nostalgic appreciation
for it and it just kills me to provide a mixed recommendation. But if
you want more than story and atmosphere, look elsewhere, because
you'll be sorely disappointed by everything else. If story and
atmosphere suffice, though, get Alan Wake right away.
