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My name is Alan Wake. I'm a writer. |OT|

chris121580 said:
I agree. Someone needs to start a thread where people can discuss the story openly without spoilers to keep it out of this thread

No, they just need to be responsibly tagged. Normally you don't need to make "fake room" in the tag such as "_________German__________" but in this instance one should realize how blatantly obvious the word you're tagging is.
 
deathberry said:
My initial impression based on roughly 5 hours of gameplay is to save your money now. Spend it on maybe Red Dead Redemption or Split/Second or Blur. Pick this up in the bargain bin or ebay a couple of weeks later.

Not to sound rude, but why would we think this will be the general consensus when we already have lots of other reviews saying otherwise? Not to discredit your thoughts on the game, and its good to see it from the other side, but I tend to think this isn't what the majority of people will feel. So I don't know if I would say to wait for the bargin bin.
 

deathberry

Neo Member
metareferential said:
Since you were so heavily criticizing the narrative structure, could you name a few games you think they did that right, this gen?

Haven't played AW yet, and I don't want to be spoiled about anything, so having another game as a comparison (in the quality of the narrative, not in the narrative itself) could help.

Uncharted 2, Mass Effect 2, GTA 4,
cod4
and Bioshock to some extent.

slasher_thrasher21 said:
Not to sound rude, but why would we think this will be the general consensus when we already have lots of other reviews saying otherwise? Not to discredit your thoughts on the game, and its good to see it from the other side, but I tend to think this isn't what the majority of people will feel. So I don't know if I would say to wait for the bargin bin.

Undoubtedly anyone who's been waiting for the game since announcement and is into the whole horror/ mystery genre will really dig this game, and should be getting it day one as there's nothing like it on the market.

I was just summing up my thoughts, even though I did follow the game for years and do dig horror/ mystery from time to time, I just wasn't liking it. Just thought I'd let others know who're on the fence.
 
deathberry said:
I was just summing up my thoughts, even though I did follow the game for years and do dig horror/ mystery from time to time, I just wasn't liking it. Just thought I'd let others know who're on the fence.

Which is fine, I really appreciate that. Guess the bargin bin comment really threw me off. :lol If you had said that part about most horror/mystery fans eating this up in the original post, then it would probably would be better clarified.
 
Uncha2, GTA4 and ME2 had all great stories and narrative.

Cod4 and Bioshock not so much.

Alan Wake has been universally praised for its story, setting and atmosphere, so it's quite strange to read such a negative comment.

But again, I need to play it, and I cant' wait.

Though your spoiler is something you should be beaten up for.

Like badly.
 

Pachimari

Member
I'm recieving the review copy later today.

Exciting because I haven't read anything of the game that I can remember and the only video I have seen is the launch trailer. I know it's about Alan Wake, he's missing wife and about light against some creepy guys and whatnot. And now, I'm outta this thread. =)

I expect to play the whole game tomorrow and perhaps I'll post my impressions (I haven't read any reviews or others impressions either).
 

Diamond

Member
Don't worry guys, this is not really a spoiler : at this point of the game you're in the dark, it's just a guess and it's way more complex than that. : )

I would say that Alan Wake tries something different with its narrative. It's a thriller with a lot of paranormal elements, and there are things voluntarily left unexplained. But it works really well, it didn't need to have a classic, "down-to-earth" narrative like Uncharted or GTA. It has instead a surreal, mysterious atmosphere which is quite unique.
 
metareferential said:
Uncha2, GTA4 and ME2 had all great stories and narrative.

Cod4 and Bioshock not so much.

Alan Wake has been universally praised for its story, setting and atmosphere, so it's quite strange to read such a negative comment.

But again, I need to play it, and I cant' wait.

Though your spoiler is something you should be beaten up for.

Like badly.

This has got to be the most asinine post in this thread. :lol :lol
 

Rad Agast

Member
peterb0y said:
guys, just finished it; i know this game has gotten some iffy reviews, but heres my take:
-My game of the generation so far. I know its high praise, but everything just "worked" for me; the balance between cutscenes/story/gameplay, the combat itself, and the best story in videogames this gen

11/10

I don't know how you liked the cut-scenes to be honest. I'm enjoying the game and the battle system is very solid (still in Epidsode 2) and the environments are great but the lip-syncing in the cut-scenes is awful. I wish they spent a bit more time on that and more fluid animations.

Oh yeah, they need to release a patch to allow us to completely turn off the HUD. I haven't tried Nightmare mode yet but I hope that's one of the changes in that mode.
 

Raide

Member
A little LTTP. Just watched the first 2 Bright Falls videos. Anyone else think they would be awesome as full TV series? Very freaky in places. :lol
 

Frostburn

Member
I haven't read this thread beyond the great OP for fear of spoilers. Come on next week! So ready to get into this game, turn down the lights, and turn up the surround sound!
 
slasher_thrasher21 said:
Not to sound rude, but why would we think this will be the general consensus when we already have lots of other reviews saying otherwise? Not to discredit your thoughts on the game, and its good to see it from the other side, but I tend to think this isn't what the majority of people will feel. So I don't know if I would say to wait for the bargin bin.

It's a 10 hour game with not a whole lot of replay value. Other than that I don't see any reason to say anything like that.
 

PBY

Banned
Raide said:
A little LTTP. Just watched the first 2 Bright Falls videos. Anyone else think they would be awesome as full TV series? Very freaky in places. :lol
you mean the night springs episodes?... and it is a full on TV series, its called the Twilight Zone
 
metareferential said:
Cod4 and Bioshock not so much.

Please hand over your gamer card, we don't want your kind around here, sir.

This gen has yet to give me another game with Bioshock's brilliant narrative and immersion.
 
derFeef said:
Episode 4 of Bright Falls was great. Need to continue my Twin Peaks catch-up now :D

Number 4 was excellent they really do a great job setting up the atmosphere but they make it really hard to keep waiting.

On a happier note Amazon just informed me my box-set of Twin Peaks just shipped.
 

derFeef

Member
BruceLeeRoy said:
Number 4 was excellent they really do a great job setting up the atmosphere but they make it really hard to keep waiting.

On a happier note Amazon just informed me my box-set of Twin Peaks just shipped.
Yeah, some crazy stuff going on in Bright Falls.
I ordered the Gold edition of Twin Peaks and started watching on Sunday, great stuff so far, was worth the money.
 

HK-47

Oh, bitch bitch bitch.
metareferential said:
Uncha2, GTA4 and ME2 had all great stories and narrative.

Cod4 and Bioshock not so much.

Alan Wake has been universally praised for its story, setting and atmosphere, so it's quite strange to read such a negative comment.

But again, I need to play it, and I cant' wait.

Though your spoiler is something you should be beaten up for.

Like badly.

=|

A narrative without any consistency for its lead and another that was a massive fetch quest for a rag tag group of psychological problems. Havent play Uncharted 2 so I cant comment but it wouldnt be hard to beat those two. Bioshock sure as hell did up to the halfway point before that fell off a cliff.

Also the internal monologue seems out of place, like something ripped from the hardboiled genre for no reason other than their previous games were noir. Or a bad 90s comic trying to be like Dark Knight Returns.

I like that one early enemy that spouts random disconnected lines with constant changes in voice tone. It was surprisingly creepy. I remember something similar in Siren. Is that a regular thing for the enemies to do?
 
derFeef said:
Yeah, some crazy stuff going on in Bright Falls.
I ordered the Gold edition of Twin Peaks and started watching on Sunday, great stuff so far, was worth the money.

Going through the series on Netflix :D. Sogood.gif
 

Pachimari

Member
Have had the game lying on my desk for the last 6 hours, has still not opened it.

I am not worthy of Alan Wake..

Nah, just got home but planning to play it tonight, I'm exhausted and tired though.
 

BeeDog

Member
Dunno if these Swedish reviews have been posted, but either way:

Level 7: http://level7.nu/texter/read.php?id=196502

7/10

Pros:

+ Excellent atmosphere
+ Beautiful forest settings
+ Fantastic lighting effects
+ Very good combat when the enemies are in front of Alan

Cons:

- Boring set-up/structure
- Unimaginative puzzles
- Few memorable set pieces
- Lacks replay value
- Horrible screen tearing
- Enemies that attack the player from offscreen

FZ.se: http://www.fz.se/artiklar/spel/20100505/alan-wake

4/5

Pros:

+ The forest
+ Thor & Odin
+ The light and darkness

Cons:

- Shallow acquaintances
- Alan Wake
- Car sequences

(wtf pros and cons, seriously)
 

soco

Member
i noticed something in the latest bright falls episode (4).
there are parts of the video that extend outside of the video window...

the first rock you see her throw, goes outside of the frame, but the second doesn't.

the moonlight reflection in the lake also extends outside

kinda wtf, did i just see that moment. which i guess is the intent.
 

conman

Member
TheVampire said:
Im upto chapter 4 and it seems to be more action than horror.
Maybe just 2 or 3 times ive jumped.
Horror is about much more than just "jumping." Horror gets in your head, but basic terror/tension just gets your heart racing a bit.

For me, the first 3 or 4 episodes of Alan Wake were some of the best horror I've ever experienced in a game. And anyone who's saying that this is "just an action game" is paying attention to the wrong things. 10% of the game is shooting things. The other 90% is spent wandering forests and deserted barns, feeling the oppressive darkness and eerie environments surrounding you on all sides. Large mountains loom. Tall trees threaten. And from time to time the shadows coalesce into nightmarish locals. You may jump from time to time, but the most memorable and truly terrifying parts of Alan Wake are the least jump-worthy.

The last two episodes do get much more action-oriented and a bit repetitive, but those first four are truly exceptional horror gaming.
 

Requeim

Member
conman said:
10% of the game is shooting things. The other 90% is spent wandering forests and deserted barns

this is not true at all

there are way too many enemy encounters in the game, it's more like 40% vs 60%
 

seady

Member
To the people who played this game, should I go watch those short video episodes they put out before playing this game?
 

NIN90

Member
seady said:
To the people who played this game, should I go watch those short video episodes they put out before playing this game?

Yeah, I just watched all 3 episodes today (there's only 3, right?) and they are pretty impressive. Nothing really looked like a spoiler.
 

derFeef

Member
NIN90 said:
Yeah, I just watched all 3 episodes today (there's only 3, right?) and they are pretty impressive. Nothing really looked like a spoiler.
There are 4 Since today :D. Todays Giant Bombcast also talks a bit Alan Wake again.
 
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