The Alan Wake of 2023, while still concerned with the same themes, is an entirely different creature.
while the car, the LED road warning signs, and your eyes all tell you the same thing.
It quickly becomes clear that what Alan does affects Saga’s world, and vice versa.
But perhaps a game that repeatedly asks “where do stories come from?”
is what we deserve in an age of unprecedented franchising and multiverse-mashing and revolving doors of reboots.
When it comes to recycling without revelation, Alan Wake 2 has studied the blade.
Is it automatically interesting to have this self-awareness hammered home, even on purpose?
Does it make it smarter or more compelling to amplify both of these concepts to the point of madness?
And to its credit, Alan Wake 2 accomplishes its goals with verve and polish.
But action games are didactic by nature - we all must learn from tutorials and mistakes to win.
A copy of Alan Wake 2 was provided for review by Epic Games.
