Still as good as I remember from 10 years ago! I always enjoyed this game for the story, the atmosphere, and the unique light-based combat sections.

The remaster looks great for the most part, and the movement is silky smooth - you can really tell the difference that 60 fps makes over the original. I think they also rebalanced the ammo drops, because Nightmare mode was a piece of cake this time around compared to what I remember on the 360. Back then I remember having to conserve ammo like mad, reset sections until I had spent as little ammo as possible, and run whenever I could. With this version, I pretty much just fought everything, and I still ended almost every episode with max ammo, including flare gun ammo.

The DLC is also good, and both are more challenging than the main game, especially the first one.

This game is a joy to revisit for anyone who was a fan of the original, and while it might seem a little dated to anyone coming to the game fresh, I'd still recommend it.

The main issue with Alan Wake, still, is that he's a pretty naff writer. Sure I wasn't expecting to be playing Thomas Ligotti Remastered, but this dude's schlocky narration just about dampens any tension otherwise well established when the world goes dark and strange.
As with Deadly Premonition, I enjoyed the overt Twin-Peaksian influence particularly on the setting. I only wish it strived for that level of eccentricity. Most of the characters play it straight, the only exception being Alan's buddy, Barry, who often veers into Disney sidekick territory. The supernatural forces at large feel ominous but the samey evil townsfolk feel disconnected from the actual goings on (also in the same way later editions of Deadly Premonition has thrown in baddies as an afterthought). The combat is also incredibly repetitive: most of the main game just has Alan running through samey drabs of woods and warehouses firing away at the same 3 or 4 guys.
However, as the remaster also includes the two extra 'specials,' I would like to mention that they add significantly to the otherwise underwhelming final act of the main game. Whilst narratively unadventurous, the specials' combat and level design are actually even more varied and interesting - making unique use of floating word barriers (the writer making his words a reality, get it?) and one particularly Silent-Hill-esque level set on a town sized ferris wheel.
Speaking of Silent Hill, as I always fucking do, Alan Wake has similar issues to that of the post Team Silent games, mainly in its lack of character, tension and pacing.
Despite that, this game is not quite as constricted to being a horror game, and probably should have ditched most of the combat sequences in favour of the investigative mystery thriller segments it usually PEAKS in.
Not as unique or groundbreaking as its long legacy would have you believe, but usually pretty fun.

Remedy Entertainment's finest narrative endeavor. The gameplay loop leaves a little to be desired, clunky mechanics and dated lighting engine aside. But playing Alan Wake for the gameplay instead of the story would be like going to see a Christopher Nolan film for good female representation. The narrative depth in Alan Wake is unparalleled with layers upon layers of meaning and examination into the human experience through the lens of a writer weaving a tale about fear and love and sacrifice that manifests itself as the game you are playing.

It's not a lake... it's an ocean.

3.5 out of 5.

This is barely a remaster, but the game holds up so well.

There has never really been anything quite like Alan Wake, this remaster proves it. This edition improves everything that Remedy did great the first time, the excellent use of lighting and use of environment to guide you through this twisting tale. I wish that the combat was improved as this game still contains the most unreliable dodge button in any video game ever. Due to this the game still feels somewhat aged and is pretty difficult to play due to this. The frustrating nature of the gameplay would make this game a hard recommend, however I still believe that this game is one of the pinnacles of game writing. It's bonkers how well the game is written and how much depth every little manuscript you pick up contains. If Remedy learns from Control I do believe the upcoming sequel could be their best game yet.

You'll have to forgive me if this seems like a contrived way to talk about this game--but my context coming into this game is from playing Control first and I lot of issues i had with the narration style click SO much better in Alan Wake. The third person dialogue feels much more thematically aligned with the "story coming true" compared to Control's first person you're in the protag's head (and while I understand the destruction of the 4th wall was thematically in line with control--I despised it and it ruined the game a lot for me.) Along with the fact that Alan Wake made sure to introduce me to characters that are driving forces in the story, compared to Control where I wasn't really invested in Jesse's brother. I didn't know him, but I got to know Alice a bit before striving to save her.

Also the atmosphere of dark woods to fight shadows in just felt right--contrasting with little spots of light to keep you going. Which also matches that muddy amiguity of the events of the game--along with that surreal feeling as you collect the collectables. I love the live action TVs (and those were also my favorite part of Control), along with the manuscript pages being a satisfying collectable in order to understand the people around you, not control them.

and as your surroundings twist and melt to attack you it matches that mystery of your enemy. But I didn't NEED to know anything more about the Darkness then that it was the darkness. There didn't need to be some long winded explanation, some deep complicated motive, it simply existed, and the game knew that.

Alan Wake felt like it KNEW what it wanted to be and DID want it wanted to do. I can respect that.

Had some WEIRD freeze up in some end game cut scenes though, which is strange on PS5. Though maybe that was a side effect of porting this game to the newest gen.

It's the Alan Wake you know and love with a shiny graphical update.

Still one of my fave stories in all of video games.

We follow bestselling author Alan Wake and his wife Alice to the fictional small town of Bright Falls, Washington where they go to take a vacation. One thing leads to another and Alan's wife goes missing, soon after Alan wakes up at a crashed car with no recollection of what's happened for a week. He finds pages from a manuscript (these double as a collectible you find in game and they typically describe a scene that happens later on in the game, using spoilers as a storytelling device like that is very creative) of a novel he wrote but can't remember and suddenly the events on these pages are coming to life before his eyes. A supernatural mystery drenched in so much symbolism and metaphors even Stephen King would be impressed.

As always Sam Lake is a master of storytelling and world-building and the town of Bright Falls is very well fleshed out with signs that tell the town's history and plenty of memorable, colorful characters you meet throughout the story. Re-playing this game after Control definitely hits different because you can see many foreshadowed references to the FBC.

From a gameplay point of view Alan Wake isn't quite the masterpiece that Control is, Remedy hadn't refined their gameplay to a perfectly polished sheen at this point. The combat is fairly typical Resident Evil 4 styled over the shoulder camera, third person shooter, you mostly find various guns like shotguns, revolvers and hunting rifles as you go through Bright Falls and these will be your main weapons against the enemies of darkness known as The Taken, however if one gets too close you can also do a slow motion cinematic dodge to avoid being hit, admittedly this isn't very useful when swarmed with enemies though. Something else worth mentioning is Alan can't sprint far before running out of breath, while this is a problem for a lot of people it doesn't bother me and I think it adds to the intense atmosphere the game.

Although in Alan Wake there is an incredibly unique mechanic where you use light as a weapon against darkness, so aside from your guns, you'll also find flashlights, batteries, flare guns and flashbang grenades and these are your greatest assets against The Taken and for me this adds an interesting layer to the gameplay that made it more intense and fun despite being slightly repetitive at times.

Another aspect to mention is the atmosphere, Alan Wake just oozes atmosphere due to its killer unsettling, mysterious, ambient OST and its fantastic nature filled and rural set pieces (The scene on the stage at the farm is easily up there with the coolest scenes I've seen in a video game, not going to lie)

The graphical updates and new character models are very nice looking, it's hard to believe the game is over 10 years old, but even without the updates the base game still holds up well graphically and we all know the real reason this was released is to make Alan Wake available to more people before Alan Wake 2 comes out because playing the first game is obviously going to be mandatory to play the 2nd.

While the combat can be a bit rough at times, everything else in the game easily makes up for it with one of the most interesting and fleshed out worlds and settings in video games, an enthralling mystery with as much psychological and philosophical depth as Cauldron Lake itself, it will truly make you think, likable and realistic characters and some of the best atmosphere in a game since Silent Hill 2, Alan Wake is a true timeless classic that deserves to be experienced by everyone at least once in their life and here's hoping Remedy refine the gameplay in Alan Wake 2 because they could have a real masterpiece on their hands if they do.

"It's not a lake, it's an ocean"

Reminds me of Control in a lot of ways (naturally), though Control is better I think. Interesting story that probably would have benefitted from slowing down its pace a hair — I definitely got lost on some of the finer plot points. Gameplay is overall good, clever light mechanics that start clunky and become more fun as you learn how to interact with the world/enemies. PS360 era third person linear action game design was nostalgic and fun but also shows its age; environments get samey at times too. Still need to wrap up the DLC which I hear is good. Looking forward to the sequel, might replay this in a year to prepare myself and try that commentary.