An Alan Wake Review
Alan Wake achieves much of what it set out to do. In terms of atmosphere – keeping me on edge throughout the entire game – I don’t know if it’s ever been done better.
Technically – the play mechanics, game balance, what they did with light and shadows – it was brilliant. The writing was stellar, too – some of the best I’ve experienced.
But the plot, for all it seemed to promise from the start, did not deliver in the end. I’m not even entirely sure what happened at the end. I suppose I should’ve been wary from the beginning when Wake quoted Stephen King about how a good horror story never reveals the nature of the threat.
Had the “dark presence” just been some force with no explanation, or even a very vague one, that would’ve been fine. But Alan Wake told us a lot about the nature of the threat, unfolding several separate but related story threads that it never tied together at the end.
It was plain anti-climactic. If the developers never intended to reveal the threat, then they shouldn’t have led us into thinking that they would.
All that said, would I recommend Alan Wake? Absolutely, but only for the sake of gameplay and atmosphere. If you’re expecting a satisfying story or resolution, you may be sorely disappointed.