The Alan Wake 2 Review That Never Was

I aimed for the sky, and wound up in the Dark Place.

When I rolled credits on Alan Wake 2, I knew I had to honor it with a review. It was only one of four games I completed in 2023, one other being the original, and I was already itching to write a new review. But there was something special about my return to the Dark Place that had me wanting to really pour my heart into an associated piece.

So, I conceptualized an idea: A review written not in a standard format but from the perspective of a character newly thrust into Alan Wake’s story. It was a lofty goal and maybe a little overthought for a piece that’s merely intended to show praise for a video game.

I laid out the framework for the story, which was meant to be written in the style of Wake’s manuscripts and introduce the Reviewer, a sort of stand-in for the titular writer. I really wanted the review to feel like a part of the universe, a very meta piece that perfectly aligned with Remedy’s style. 

Alan Wake 2 launched at the perfect time for me to work on an extensive review. I had completed the game by the end of November, and historically, the holidays are consistently a dead time for my freelancing work. 

Well, they were, at least, until last year. 

In an unexpected twist of fate, the 2023 holiday season wound up being nonstop with work and my busiest in many years. While I’ll never complain about steady work, it left very little time for personal projects. Before I knew it, it was January 2024, and the novelty of Alan Wake 2 had waned slightly in the industry. I was always waiting for that one weekend when I could sit down and work on the review, but it never came. 

And that all brings us to today. I liked this idea so much that I want to share the very little I did get to churn out. It’s not long at all, but it does offer a glimpse into the direction I was envisioning. If anything, maybe you Alan Wake fans will get a kick out of it.

Without further adieu:

The Untitled Alan Wake 2 Review

Prologue

The Reviewer put down the controller, his mind clouded with confusion as credits rolled on the screen in front of him. In the dimly lit room, the television’s glow beckoned him like a portal to another dimension. Was it how he had gotten there, to that cold and unfamiliar dark space? 

For the past 30 hours, he glued himself to the TV to guide compelling characters down a narrative with an ending that had already been written. They were his marionettes, and he the puppeteer. The Writer’s words may have brought evil to Bright Falls, but it was the Reviewer who progressed time and propelled the heroes forward down shadowed paths with only two endings: Game Over or the Next Chapter.

Though he had flashes of enjoying his time being a guiding hand for the tortured Writer and stouthearted FBI Agent, now he felt more like he was part of their story. A new hero, introduced for a purpose he had yet to unravel. 

Across the room sat a typewriter, old and worn, identical to the one the Writer had used. “Tell the world,” a gruff voice echoed from a dark place in his mind, its familiarity pulling the Reviewer’s thoughts back to the forests of Bright Falls. “Everyone must know…” 

Without thinking, the Reviewer took his place at the typewriter. He had to share his experience. It would help the Writer and FBI Agent. How, he didn’t yet know. But it was now his purpose to write, and so as the tips of his fingers brushed the keys for the first time, he went back to the beginning.  

Recalling Alan Wake and Saga Anderson’s perils and how he had helped navigate them, the Reviewer receded into the secluded space in his mind. In the silence of his Writer’s Room, free from distraction, he wrote. 

The clacking of keys filled the space, bouncing off bare walls and echoing back the words of praise for Sam Lake’s magnum opus… 

Part 1: A New Face Comes to Bright Falls

Everything seemed so familiar and yet still very alien. It had been over a decade since he last visited Bright Falls, but the memory of the Reviewer’s encounter with the Dark Presence lingered strong. Revisiting the town, viewing it through a different set of eyes, someone more analytical and determined than Wake ever was, offered a unique perspective. 

The absence of the titular character could have been jarring, but FBI agent Saga Anderson is more than just a one-dimensional secondary protagonist stepping into Wake’s shoes. Along with her case-hardened partner, Alex Casey, Anderson is immediately thrust into the horrors plaguing Bright Falls, and it’s in these opening moments that it’s evident Anderson is Wake’s polar opposite. Confident and steadfast, unwavering even in the face of something otherworldly, she’s strong in ways Wake failed to be.

Amidst learning about Anderson’s strengths, the Reviewer was sent to her Mind Place, an internal retreat that allowed him to guide her in piecing together clues and deductions. In Anderson’s mental office, information is gathered and sorted information, both to determine the next move and to piece together the many threads of this spiraling story.

The Mind Place could feel like a gimmick at first, but the more it filled up with pieces of a broad universe, the easier it was to appreciate its presence. Different threads were filled with unique details that aligned with points of interest or denizens of Bright Falls and the neighboring town of Watery to flesh out a bigger narrative. For those who want to use it properly, it’s a puzzle that tests basic deduction and matching skills.

To be continued…?