GT gives 8.6/10 and that's the same score as Gamerankings has currently. Of course, most people expected a 95%er after six years of development, but it seems to be a decent game. I'll get it later, because I preordered Red Dead Redemption.
But as annoyed with the ending and the, "but wait, what was the deal with..." aspect of the story, Alan Wake has a host of little things that just make me smile. Whoever picked and licensed the music deserves a commendation, as the song choices for episode endings and key moments is spot-on (I never thought I'd see a horror game expertly trot out "Coconut," Roy Orbison, Nick Cave, Poe, and freakin' David Bowie like this one). On occasion, Alan will find a TV and be able to watch a one-to-two minute episode of "Night Springs," a delightful little Twilight Zone analogue that, even though I should be running through a coal mine or a logging camp or a power plant, utterly transfixes me. I crack up when another character uses author names as insults or when your best friend describes his headlamp as analogous to a "flaming eye of Mordor." And I definitely had the biggest, dopiest grin on my face when I encountered the best use of heavy metal in a videogame not called Brutal Legend.
1Up B+
If anything, Alan Wake reminds me of the first Uncharted. It is a great, but flawed work (hello ugly daylight, quirky animations, and a script that mocks the viewer even more than Lost or Twin Peaks) that lays the foundation for what could be an absolutely amazing follow-up. I just hope it doesn't take another five or six years.
Closing Comments
All of which leaves us in a slightly difficult position. With a first half that’s glacial at best and patronising at worst, it’s a tough ask to expect audiences to stick with it once those glorious vistas and early scenes of intrigue fade against the over-egged torch-pointing and repetitive mountainside trudges. Admittedly, the game’s unique central conceit and refreshing setting might offer enough novelty to keep more patient players entertained, but it’s a shame it takes so long for Alan Wake to find the confidence it needs to put its laudable innovations to good use. For all its flaws though, it's Alan Wake’s eventual shift into meticulously-paced set-pieces and relentless sensory assault that linger once the credits roll. It’s certainly a long way from flawed genius but it’s an experience that’s hard to shake when it’s all over. And it’s rare you get to say that about a game these days.
IGN UK 8.0
Alan Wake isn't an overly long game at maybe a dozen hours, but in the last quarter or so I found a sort of fatigue set in with what I was doing. It might be the very limited variety of enemies you face; there are only four or five types repeated almost ad nauseam throughout the game. Or maybe it speaks to the storyline's high level of intrigue that I just wanted to get on with the combat so I could uncover the next wild piece of the mystery. Earlier in the game, the nighttime action is broken up by expository daytime sequences that almost feel like an adventure game, but the pacing suffers a lack of brevity in its last couple of hours. A more condensed final act would have wrapped this package up a little tighter.
That's small potatoes in the grand scheme, though. Alan Wake is on the whole a propulsive, thrilling, and downright spooky action game from start to finish, quite unlike anything else on the market in visual style and storytelling format. It might take Remedy forever and a day to get from one game to the next, but Alan Wake proves once again their toil is well worth the wait.
Giant Bomb 4/5
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