Alan Wake Review

05 May 2010 at 11:48:49 by Tim McDonald
Systems used to review this title: (360)

I've been working on a theory that there's one thing that distinguishes a truly triple-A title from something that's merely a good, polished game. It's this: attention to detail. If there's something that's not quite perfect – a frequent animation that clips, or something that doesn't ring true - players will pick up on it, even if not consciously. Likewise, if you slavishly devote your time to getting the little things right, players' faces will break into big fat disbelieving grins.

Alan Wake made me do the latter more times than I can count (so more than three, then.) This probably isn't the desired effect in a horror-thriller, admittedly, so you'll likely be relieved to know that there are a fair few moments that turned that grin into a mask of shock (again: more than three.)

Let's get the obvious out of the way first. Yes, the protagonist is a horror novelist named Alan, and is therefore the least likely videogame protagonist since Nora Batty starred in a Last of the Summer Wine videogame that appeared only in my head. Alan, unfortunately enough, is a horror novelist with writer's block. After the success of his last few novels, the poor chap's hit a stumbling point and his wife Alice suggests that a trip to the lovely rural community of Bright Falls might be just what he needs to recharge his batteries and kill his writer's block.

Obviously, this being a horror-thriller, the game isn't spent lazing around a peaceful cabin and wandering the beautiful town gathering ideas, although I'd probably buy that game. Weirdness begins to occur as soon as Alan gets into the town proper and its kooky cast of characters make their presence felt, and it's not long before things go from weird to dangerous. Alice disappears, and shortly thereafter Alan wakes up in a car teetering on a cliff, blood dripping from his head, and with no memory of the week that's apparently transpired since his wife vanished, save that something terrible has happened. The weirdness only grows when he comes across pages of a manuscript he's supposedly written, and when the events he's presumably scribed start to take place – events involving a dark presence lurking in the town and shadowy figures hunting him in the darkness – Wake starts to religiously hunt the manuscript pages, hoping that they'll lead him to his missing wife.

If you're sensing Twin Peaks overtones, then you've hit the nail on the head: Alan Wake delivers a superbly creepy slice of small-town American life with Lynch's masterpiece constantly at the forefront in terms of recognisable inspirations. There are plenty of other little nods here and there – particular scenes will evoke memories of everything from Kubrick's The Shining and Hitchcock's The Birds, through to evil Tooth Fairy-'em-up Darkness Falls – and fans of horror will enjoy playing spot the reference.

Other inspirations have been taken in more general terms. The game is structured as a TV show divided up into episodes, with each ending on a cliffhanger followed by some sort of licensed credits music. Moving past that brings you to a “Previously on Alan Wake” montage. If done badly, this would be at worst jarring and at best annoying. It's neither. I mentioned attention to detail, and these segments are perfectly timed, both providing a refresher of the salient points that'll crop up in the next chapter and reinforcing the game's overarching themes.

Some parts of the game are set during the relatively safe day, when Wake interacts with other characters and attempts to find his wife, but it's at night that the “game” part of this title is really set, and happily the two are extremely well-paced with areas rarely feeling elongated and with your goals, usually asking you to get from A to B, always feeling critical to the story. When darkness falls, Wake finds himself beset by possessed townsfolk armed with everything from fireaxes to chainsaws, and they can't simply be shot dead. The possession is powerful enough that it grants them a measure of protection, and this protection first needs to be burned away with light before they're rendered vulnerable to the revolvers, shotguns, and rifles that you'll find dotted around the town. Initially, your only measure of light-based defense is a simple flashlight, which – on its own – takes far too long to burn through the dark possession. Fortunately, Wake can “boost” the light, rapidly draining the batteries but slowing and blinding his foes, and inflicting far more in the way of damage.

All ...

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