Step into the shoes of Alan Wake, a best-selling novelist who is going on vacation in hopes to relieve his writer's block. However, Alan has much more to think about other than his novel when his wife mysteriously vanishes, and pages of a manuscript that he doesn't remember writing suddenly begin to appear; ominously outlining events that are about to occur. Alan Wake is brought to us by the developer of Max Payne 1 and 2, Remedy Entertainment, and was initially released in 2010 for the Xbox 360 before finally making its way to PC in 2012.
Things start off normal enough, you're on a ferry with your wife Alice, headed to a remote destination in the forest for your vacation. Your writer's block has been killing your career, you need the escape. You're met by friendly locals who are excited that a big-shot such as yourself will be vacationing near their little town. You stop by a gas station on your way to the cabin that you and Alice have rented, but once you come out of the bathroom things begin to go haywire. However, it's when Alice goes missing at the cabin that things really heat up. She's scared of the dark, so badly that she becomes paralyzed with fear, and now everything is dark; save for what becomes illuminated by your flashlight, and your wife is nowhere to be found.
The storytelling in the game is absolutely fantastic, as Alan's inner monologue is spoken as though it is in book format. The game itself is set-up in a TV show format, where once you reach the next chapter you'll be greeted with a "Last Time on Alan Wake" sequence. The entire experience is like playing through a deranged horror show while listening to a coupling audio book. These unique factors only adds to the eeriness of the game, and they also add a different spin on the horror genre as a whole. For the time of release, the environments are lavishly detailed and come with a thick amount of ambiance such as fog, rain, and lightning. Most of your time will be spent in the dark, with only a flashlight to help guide you from one creepy destination to the next. While most of the baddies look the same, their potential of showing up always keeps you looking over your shoulder to make sure that you're not being chased by their near silent presence.
Equipped initially with only a flashlight and a pistol, you will later find yourself with more diverse guns to battle the onslaught of evil that awaits. Even though Alan Wake is fast-paced, the fact that you never know from which direction, and when, the devious shadow-people will make an appearance keeps tight tension in the air. Combat is simple, you must shine a concentrated flashlight beam on the shadow-people to dissolve their darkness barrier, and then fill them full of bullets. Paranormal entities are abound, and even inanimate objects become possessed and deadly. When you get overwhelmed, flares and flashbangs are your best friend when it comes to keeping these monstrosities at bay. Whatever you do, your ultimate goal is to stay in the light; that's the only place that you're safe in, but well-lit areas are few and far between.
To say that Alan Wake was, and still is, one of the best horror games of the last generation is an understatement. The game was initially a diamond in the rough when it was released on the Xbox 360, though it appears to have garnered the attention it deserves after being released on PC. Graphically, it doesn't even look that dated, it was very far advanced for its time when looking at other games of the same genre and time period, such as F.E.A.R. and Condemned: Criminal Origins. Alan Wake has a flair to it that no other horror title has yet to emulate, duplicate, or even attempt to replicate, it's one of the few games that have been left alone to be uniquely itself. Even six years later, this game stands as one of the horror games that must be played, but not for the price of $32.99 CAD; wait for a summer or holiday sale first.
Rating: 5.0/5.0 - An astonishing achievement, this game must be played.The Horror Network
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