Creating a good suspenseful video game isn’t easy. Just ask Konami, the publisher of Silent Hill. There’s a fine line between cheese and suspense. You need to set the right mood, you need to have believable characters and most important, you need to have a compelling story. That could be why so many suspense / thriller games have failed in the past. Suspense is a hard genre to pull off, especially when it comes to videogames. But it is possible. In fact Remedy Entertainment seems to have almost perfected the formula with its latest game Alan Wake.
The Story
You are famous author Alan Wake. You’ve just come off an intense book tour and need some time to relax, some time to reconnect with your wife and to get your mind off the busy schedule you’ve been following. Heck, it might even give you a chance to think about what your next project will be. Knowing you need some rest and relaxation, your wife books a vacation to the secluded Bright Falls in the Pacific Northwest.
The town itself seems a bit quirky (they have an annual festival known as Deerfest) and is full of interesting characters. While it all seems harmless at first your relaxing getaway soon turns into a nightmare. Within hours of your arrival your wife disappears and the mad hunt begins to find her. As if her disappearance isn’t enough, you soon begin to realize something isn’t right with this town. Dark shadows begin taking control over residents, controlling them like puppets, and a previous book you wrote seems to becoming a reality right within the town. Is your wife alive, or has she too been swallowed by the darkness?
The Gameplay
Alan Wake plays like many other survival horror games on the market. Gameplay is a mix of exploration and action. As you explore the town and surrounding areas you’ll run into residents who will give background on the community and help advance the story. The story is what makes this game really stand out from other survival horror titles on the market. It’s surprisingly well written, almost feeling like a Dean Koontz or Stephen King novel, which clearly is exactly what Remedy Entertainment was going for here.
Most of your exploration will take place on foot, although you will get access to a vehicle from time to time. While traveling during the day is easy, the challenge comes once the sun goes down. Enemies known as “The Taken” roam the streets and woods and will stop at nothing to kill you. The Taken are basically people who have been taken over by a dark power. You’re only line of defense is light. Shining light on them will draw the darkness out. You’ll depend a lot on your handy flashlight, but other light sources will include street lights, electric generators, flares and flare guns. Once the darkness has been drawn out you will be able to injure The Taken with shotguns, rifles, pistols etc.
The game is split up into Chapters, which is brilliant as Alan Wake himself is an author. The story has a nice pace and is complimented by the manuscript pages often found floating throughout the town and wilderness. The pages seem to be from a manuscript you wrote prior to your arrival at Bright Falls. Turns out the story written on the pages is coming alive right before your eyes in Bright Falls. Reading some of these pages will help flesh out background to the characters you meet, while others foreshadow what’s about to happen in the game.
Another nice touch is the numerous television sets and radios found scattered throughout Bright Falls. Turn them on and you can watch “Twilight Zone” style TV shows or listen to a local late night radio broadcast where local residents call in to complain about mysterious events happening in the town.
The Presentation
I love the look and feel of Alan Wake. The graphics are dark and ominous, making you feel like you’re inside the pages of a Stephen King novel. I loved walking through the woods at night, only to see beams of light shine through the trees, lighting the ferns and undergrowth. It’s simply beautiful.
And just as beautiful is the music. Remedy chose to use actual licensed musical tracks for this game. Each chapter ends with music, at times making the game seem more like a movie than a novel. Each chapter also begins with a narrator giving a recap of the previous chapter. The game has a good feel and flow to it. I only can wish others games felt this fresh!
The Downsides
While I loved Alan Wake I will say I’m a bit disappointed by your enemies known simply as The Taken. They are kinda cool, but most of them are lumberjacks. Okay, I know the game takes place in a community where logging is big business but the darkness seems to prefer lumberjacks as you see them over and over again. Yes the odd Sheriff or resident is also taken over, but lumberjacks by far outnumber everyone else. Weird.
The Bottom Line
I tend to love survival horror games but Alan Wake is at the top of my list. The story is good, the graphics fantastic and the feel of the game is so unique I wanted to keep playing it long after it was done. Thank goodness extra downloadable content is coming out for it soon. The only reason this game isn’t getting a better score is because of all the lumberjacks! I simply wish there was more variation in the enemies. If you’re a fan of survival horror games or enjoy picking up a good thriller now and again, Alan Wake is for you.
The Good
Creepy atmosphere
Gorgeous graphics
Stellar soundtrack
The Bad
How many lumberjacks live in this town!
Alan Wake 9/10