Alan Wake was one of my first favorite games, while it's significance has varied over the years I can genuinely say my excitement for the second is completely unparalleled by any game in a long couple years. Alan Wake Remastered does a lot of things, some good, some bad, some odd.
The gameplay of Alan Wake is one of my favorite parts, even if others disagree with that sentiment. The flashlight being such an interesting thing to manage and brings it beyond a mindless 3rd person shooter with horror spooks. However it's also nothing to write home about, it has it's fun gimmicks and I enjoy those.
The story is amazing, I love the style of the storytelling and I know the writers tried really hard to make that work, applauds to Sam Lake and his team. While the same still has some questionable voice acting from time to time, it really still does steal you with the story and the way it's presented. I think it's one of the better straight-forward (but it definitely obtuse) stories of all time. I still hold some complaint with the ending, but with Alan Wake II right around the corner, I'm not too upset waiting a little longer for that conclusion. And yes, of course, some moment in the game are meh, but you get that with a lot of games from this era so I can mostly push those few instances of awkwardness aside.
The "Remaster" was the hard part for me to actually sink my money into because, from most gameplay examples, I was shown a very minimal overhaul in the game and more just a refresh for textures, which is fine, but a little undercutting it for the price the game sells at. I also ran a little bit into loading errors whenever I would pause a menu, but they weren't immersion-breaking to say the least. In a sense, as a "Remaster" it's fine, I would probably play it if I were to revisit again, but there is some of the style lacking from the original that doesn't really make it into this game, just a minor point though.
Alan Wake is a good game, I love it a lot and the sequel looks to be shaping up really well and I can't wait for it. It was about time I came back to this title and gave it my proper review 13 years later and it still holds water. Love it, looking forward to the follow-up in October.
The gameplay of Alan Wake is one of my favorite parts, even if others disagree with that sentiment. The flashlight being such an interesting thing to manage and brings it beyond a mindless 3rd person shooter with horror spooks. However it's also nothing to write home about, it has it's fun gimmicks and I enjoy those.
The story is amazing, I love the style of the storytelling and I know the writers tried really hard to make that work, applauds to Sam Lake and his team. While the same still has some questionable voice acting from time to time, it really still does steal you with the story and the way it's presented. I think it's one of the better straight-forward (but it definitely obtuse) stories of all time. I still hold some complaint with the ending, but with Alan Wake II right around the corner, I'm not too upset waiting a little longer for that conclusion. And yes, of course, some moment in the game are meh, but you get that with a lot of games from this era so I can mostly push those few instances of awkwardness aside.
The "Remaster" was the hard part for me to actually sink my money into because, from most gameplay examples, I was shown a very minimal overhaul in the game and more just a refresh for textures, which is fine, but a little undercutting it for the price the game sells at. I also ran a little bit into loading errors whenever I would pause a menu, but they weren't immersion-breaking to say the least. In a sense, as a "Remaster" it's fine, I would probably play it if I were to revisit again, but there is some of the style lacking from the original that doesn't really make it into this game, just a minor point though.
Alan Wake is a good game, I love it a lot and the sequel looks to be shaping up really well and I can't wait for it. It was about time I came back to this title and gave it my proper review 13 years later and it still holds water. Love it, looking forward to the follow-up in October.