It probably won’t surprise a lot of people to hear me say this, but Alan Wake 2 looks very,VERYvery good. Remedy Entertainment has development capabilities few can match, and Alan Wake 2 is shaping up to be a truly great survival horror game following the excellent Control. how could I know? Because as part of the Summer Game Fest Play Days, I had the pleasure of attending a closed-door demo led by several members of the Remedy development team.
The hands-off demo kicked off a while back in the Alan Wake 2 storyline, which saw new add-on protagonist Saga Anderson head to the Cauldron Lake wilderness in Bright Falls to investigate a series of murders. The case leads the Saga to a disturbing pile of clues, all related to pages of manuscripts scattered around the surroundings, pages written by famous and titular characters of Alan Wake himself – who he has written over the past 15 Been trapped in the Dark Place for years.
Remedy has always been a master of ambient storytelling, but in Alan Wake 2, it really feels like the developers have taken that up a notch. The world is so detailed that it feels truly real and immersive. But it’s also pretty uncomfortable to explore when the wind howls through the trees and the way the light cuts through the treelines makes for an eerie environment. The Saga’s journey through the woodlands of Cauldron Lake and what I witnessed always kept me on the edge of my seat because every moment felt like a point where something nasty and hostile could jump out and start attacking the FBI detective character . Admittedly, this level of unease isn’t accounted for by the many jump scares Remedy sprinkles in.
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The familiar process of exploring and piecing together the central mysteries of the storyline is still very much in Alan Wake 2, just like its predecessor, and that’s not the only similarity, as Remedy has returned to a whole host of familiar tropes and gameplay elements . The idea of using light to weaken threats remains a major mechanic in Alan Wake 2, as is lingering in the spotlight to slowly regenerate health and flee from danger. Safe rooms are also back again (these rooms are used as areas where you can switch between Allen and the Saga’s campaigns at any time – each campaign can be played as you like from start to finish), as are the red supply lockers scattered around the world, in There you can find batteries, ammo, etc. Unlike the original game, Remedy has (thankfully) decided that the thermos needs a new purpose, and now in Alan Wake 2, they serve as save points rather than incredibly overused collectibles.
Gameplay-wise, Remedy uses a shooting system similar to other survival horror games, which means the targets are wobbly and erratic, and you don’t throw ammo at enemies. There are a variety of weapon types to spot and use, including pistols and shotguns, and again evasive moves to illustrate avoiding threatening attacks. However, if you get caught by an enemy, use the quick event to see Alan or the Saga escape danger with minimal damage. In the spirit of the great survival horror games of late, Remedy looked to them for inspiration in terms of inventory, as now Saga and Alan need to manage the items and weapons they carry, etc., by arranging them and plugging them into a grid-like format.
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But these small tweaks and additions aren’t the only area where Remedy seeks to iterate and add new features and gameplay elements. The demo revolves entirely around the Saga and what she brings, so it’s unclear how those abilities translate to Alan herself, but only the Saga will now have access to a range of new abilities, including access to Mind Place and passing through Profiling.
Fans of Sherlock Holmes will get a good idea of Mind Place, as it’s actually the same concept as Mind Palace. The idea is that the Saga can at any time enter her own thought structure, a safe space where she can assess and begin to piece together a mystery away from the dangers and distractions of the physical world. In Mind Place, Saga has access to the Detective Board, where she can evaluate collected clues and determine how they connect to each other and even lead to other clues. Then, on top of that, she can begin to unravel and understand the characters she encounters through profiling, an interrogation mechanic where she finds flaws and character traits and uses them to unravel the character’s ticks. It’s all very Sherlock-like, but it works in practice.
While I’ve only seen 30 minutes of Alan Wake 2 gameplay, much of which is similar to what’s offered in the latest trailer, the quality of Remedy’s aim in this game is evident. Immersive elements, narrative depth, character animations, actors’ performances, presentations, and fantastic graphics, all combine to create an incredibly exciting experience. Mid-October is shaping up to be one of the busiest weeks of the year in gaming, but Alan Wake 2 has the potential to be the top of this promising crop.
