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Remastered for a new generation. The game’s cutscenes, quirky cast of characters, and majestic Pacific Northwest vistas have been enhanced for a visual impact that matches its unnerving atmosphere on Consoles and PC.
- Assault and batteries.
- What We Said About Alan Wake on Xbox 360
- Score: 9
- Flashlight Flashback
- Alan Wake Remastered Trailer — PlayStation Showcase 2021
- Lake 'n' Wake
- What are you hoping to see next from Remedy Entertainment?
- Verdict
- Alan Wake Remastered Review
- More Reviews by Tristan Ogilvie
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By Tristan Ogilvie
Updated: Oct 14, 2021 8:21 pm
Posted: Oct 4, 2021 1:00 pm
Like a flashlight flickering to life from a freshly inserted set of Energizers, Alan Wake Remastered takes the 11-year-old survival horror shooter and presents it in its most radiant form. Yet while the details in its moody environments are now far easier to make out, its gameplay shortcomings are presented in equally stark relief. Alan Wake Remastered’s twisted brand of psychological torture by torchlight still makes for a supremely tense trip through the woods, but as a shooter it’s stuck in the past compared to more modern games – including developer Remedy’s own Control.
Remedy has built a world that, despite being a fantastical realm of twisting shadows and realities, is solidly anchored in authenticity. Outstanding environmental design and some brilliant visuals and sound make Bright Falls and its mountainous surroundings look and feel alive. Though the camera can cause issues and the supernatural story that's mo...
Read the full Alan Wake (Xbox 360) Review
Read the additional Alan Wake: The Writer DLC (Xbox 360) Review
Make no mistake, this rerelease is very much a remaster as opposed to a full remake; its graphics may have been overhauled to an appreciable extent but gameplay remains unchanged. It looks pinsharp at 4K and runs at a fluid 60 frames per second on the PlayStation 5, and the slightly shoddy cutscenes from the 2010 original have been given a welcome new lick of paint. Even so, Alan Wake Remastered remains a fair way behind the big-budget visual standards that have become the norm in 2021. Perhaps to best illustrate this, after my first 10 minutes with the PS5 version I had to pause it and double check that I hadn’t downloaded the PS4 version by accident.
Still, the gloomy setting of Bright Falls has certainly never looked better, with jagged edges straightened out by anti-aliasing, textures more clearly defined right down to the woolen weave of Wake’s coat, and the neon signs in the local diner popping with a more realistically vibrant glow. Unfortunately, the character animations seemingly haven’t received similar attention in the remastering process, making their stiff movements seem as wooden as the western pines that surround the small town.
Otherwise, Alan Wake Remastered plays in the exact same way as the original did, and in some respects I admire the streamlined nature of the survival-horror shooting at its core. Ammo and batteries can certainly be scarce at times but for the most part there’s little need for any complicated inventory juggling, and there aren’t any crafting systems to fuss with or skill trees to flesh out like so many shooters released in recent years. Aside perhaps from the collectible coffee thermoses, nothing you pick up feels superfluous; every flare is precious for buying a bit of breathing room when you’re surrounded, and each hunting rifle bullet is best kept in your back pocket for when one of the more brutish Bright Falls locals attacks.
There aren’t any crafting systems to fuss with or skill trees to flesh out like so many shooters released in recent years.
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Of course, the downside to such simplicity is that there’s not a great deal of depth. By the story’s midpoint you’ve had your hands on all the weapons you’re ever going to get access to, and each shadowy enemy ambush starts to feel largely indistinguishable from the next, causing Alan Wake Remastered’s second half to become increasingly mired in repetition. Remedy would later go on to, well, remedy this issue with the excellent Control in 2019, which evolved its combat over the course of its duration via a transforming gun and expanding set of superpowers, but that just makes Alan Wake’s one-note action seem even more antiquated in retrospect.
The episodic structure of Alan Wake was inspired by the popularity of binge-watching DVD box sets at the time of its development, and I know that for a fact since its writer and creative director Sam Lake mentions it in the brand-new commentary track included with this Remastered edition. Eleven years on from Alan Wake’s original release, comparatively fewer people binge DVDs in favour of consuming television via digital streaming services, and as a result, a majority of people aren’t really provided with the means to listen to commentary tracks anymore. But I, for one, miss the candid insight into the creative process a good commentary track can provide, and so I very much enjoyed Lake’s takes on Alan Wake with the benefit of hindsight and the experience of a couple more games under his team’s belt. Plus it just feels so appropriate to listen to the writer of a game monologue about a game about a perpetually monologuing writer.
Two bonus episodes that were originally paid DLC, The Signal and The Writer, are also included with Alan Wake Remastered, and they come complete with the same level of visual polish. Having skipped over them the first time around I was delighted to discover how they expand on the transforming-words-into-objects mechanic that is only briefly used at the end of the main campaign; however, having replayed the entire story and its two epilogue episodes I still have no real idea what the meaning is behind it all.
Playing Alan Wake Remastered is a bit like taking an old horror hardcover off the bookshelf and wrapping it in a glossy dust jacket; it looks brand new on the surface, but the experience of actually thumbing through it remains the same and some of the edges of of its well-loved pages are starting to look a bit dog-eared. It’s therefore fairly iness...
Review scoring
good
Alan Wake Remastered is a fairly inessential upgrade for existing fans, but this moody mystery is still well worth a look for newcomers.
Tristan Ogilvie
IGN's Tristan Ogilvie reviews the 2021 remaster of the 2010 survival horror shooter Alan Wake, praising its visuals and story but criticizing its gameplay and interface. He compares it to Remedy's later game Control and the original Xbox 360 version.
Oct 5, 2021 · In this award-winning cinematic action-thriller, troubled author Alan Wake embarks on a desperate search for his missing wife, Alice. Alan Wake Remastered offers the complete experience, with the main game and its two story expansions - The Signal and The Writer - with stunning new 4K visuals.
- Remedy Entertainment
- Windows
His nightmarish journey to find answers to the mind-bending mystery he faces will lead him into the terrifying depths of the night. Alan Wake Remastered offers the complete experience, with the main game and its two story expansions - The Signal and The Writer - in stunning new 4K visuals.
Oct 5, 2021 · Pre-order the remaster of the cinematic action game from Remedy Entertainment, featuring overhauled visuals and new features. Fight with light against a supernatural darkness in the mysterious town of Bright Falls and uncover the mind-bending mystery of Alan Wake's disappearance.
Oct 25, 2021 · Creepy atmosphere, fantastic combat, and clever storytelling make Alan Wake's quest thrilling from beginning to end. By Tom Mc Shea and Phil Hornshaw on October 25, 2021 at 9:41AM PDT.
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