Alan Wake

The idea behind Remedy's third person shooter Alan Wake is simple: what if Steven King created a decent video game? The plot itself is a bit harder to describe. Alan Wake is about a famous thriller writer who, on his wife's insistence, decides to battle his horrible writer's block by taking a vacation in scene Bright Springs Washington. I haven't been to the Pacific Northwest at all, but the game makes it look really picturesque- lakes, forests, rolling mountains, the works. The scenery was beautiful, and the characters populating the small town were at least decent graphically. It felt like they perfectly captured the feel of a small town where everyone knew and depended on each other. Anyway, once Alan arrives in town he finds his house under mysterious circumstances, gets into a fight with his wife, and witnesses her possibly supernatural kidnapping. From then on Alan does whatever it takes to get his wife back, and his world spirals into a nightmare. And that's the best way to describe the game- a nightmare. It's sort of a mystery, but so much of it doesn't make sense (on purpose!) that most of the time I couldn't tell what what real or not. Alan's being led around by some supernatural presence who experienced what he's going through 30 years earlier; he's completely forgotten the week since the kidnapping; and he's finding bits of a manuscript he doesn't remember writing that is sort of coming true. He faces off against possessed woodsmen and inanimate objects, leading to an interesting type of combat. Alan needs to "shoot" people with a self-recharging flashlight until they lose their shadowy outer layer, and then he's free to blast away with a shotgun. I liked the idea of light doing as much damage as bullets- spotlights were like rail guns, flash-bangs were basically grenades, and flare guns were as powerful as missile launchers. While running through cabins, farms, and all sorts of small-town buildings was fun, there was a little bit too much just running around in the woods, following the blip on your radar to whatever came next. At least the scenery was nice during these parts. Also, after Final Fantasy IX it's nice to play a game where the final boss isn't impossibly difficult compared to everything else. The game wrapped up in a pretty neat way that didn't tie together every loose end, but leaves plenty of room for a sequel, which I'd gladly purchase. So yeah, Alan Wake's nothing you need to play, but if you have some interest give it a shot. It won't disappoint.