Thoughts on Alan Wake

[TPiddy]

So, I just finished my first playthrough of Alan Wake, and I have to wonder, where did games like this go? Why do so little of them appear nowadays? This was one of the best gaming experiences I've had in a long time, and one of the first games where I actually watched all the cutscenes and dialogue.

While the game is not without it's flaws (the lip-synching is horrible and the graphics are just average), I was truly enthralled with the story, had some TENSE moments when I truly didn't have ammo coming out my ears and adored the atmosphere they created.

So, points for discussion would be, what are your thoughts on Alan Wake, and why do games like this seem to come along so infrequently now?

 

[Meggiepants]

I enjoyed it. And I think more games that are very plot driven would be nice. But they are probably not as profitable as COD:X or Madden 2020. Those games sell really well, so there will always be more of them then games like Alan Wake or Heavy Rain.

At least the industry still allows for games like this to be released from time to time.

 

[Susan Arendt]

Games like Alan Wake all suffer from one major flaw: lack of replayability. The "one and done" model simply isn't as viable as it once was. People only have so much cash to spend on gaming, and if faced with a choice between a game that they'll get 10 hours out of or one they'll get 50 out of, they'll choose the latter more often than not, even if it's a slightly lesser experience. Hard to argue with them, really.

 

[TPiddy]

Games like Alan Wake all suffer from one major flaw: lack of replayability. The "one and done" model simply isn't as viable as it once was. People only have so much cash to spend on gaming, and if faced with a choice between a game that they'll get 10 hours out of or one they'll get 50 out of, they'll choose the latter more often than not, even if it's a slightly lesser experience. Hard to argue with them, really.

Hmm, good point... While I my personal experience with Alan Wake will be 2 and done, I can see some people who wouldn't play it again. I suppose this kind of thing is only a factor to those with limited funds... which is the majority of gamers anyhow. Apparently they're down episodic downloads for Alan Wake too, hopefully that could increase replayability.

 

[TPiddy]

I enjoyed it. And I think more games that are very plot driven would be nice. But they are probably not as profitable as COD:X or Madden 2020. Those games sell really well, so there will always be more of them then games like Alan Wake or Heavy Rain.

At least the industry still allows for games like this to be released from time to time.

That's true... I could just imagine if this were really a launch title though... could have been a major selling point for the 360 .

 

[Meggiepants]

I enjoyed it. And I think more games that are very plot driven would be nice. But they are probably not as profitable as COD:X or Madden 2020. Those games sell really well, so there will always be more of them then games like Alan Wake or Heavy Rain.

At least the industry still allows for games like this to be released from time to time.

That's true... I could just imagine if this were really a launch title though... could have been a major selling point for the 360 .

The launch titles for the current generation were a little on the lacking side. If any of them had the titles that have come out in the last 6 months at launch, I think way more machines would have been sold right off the bat. It would have been crazy town.

But Alan Wake sure has that visual wow factor going for it. Just so long as they don't show people talking.

 

[Onyx Oblivion]

I loved it.

I'd love to see a sequel.

Best lighting effects we're likely to ever see.

Way to go, Remedy!

 

[BlumiereBleck]

It was one of the only 2 games I wanted this year(the other being Fable 3 :3 ) but for the 1 time i got to play it I enjoyed it a lot. Seriously it was very gripping. The games went away when online multiplayer became the new big thing.

 

[L3m0n_L1m3]

I liked it, but I didn't find it the least bit scary. This really needs to be fixed.

Also a certain page found only in NIGHTMARE mode kind of annoyed me. It wasn't hard to find.... Just what it had written on it.

 

[Feste the Jester]

I thought it was really fun. The only major flaw was the whole cinematics thing. When enemies appear the camera swung around and pulled up to show the enemies and started playing "combat music" which really cut out any tense moments I could have had wondering if an enemy would pop up or if that post I just saw might actually be one of the taken ready to kill me. It was really good though and had strong plot and fun gameplay and great atmosphere.

 

[maddawg IAJI]

The game was....predictable to say the least. Sure, on the first couple of missions, it was tense and it had its scary moments, but after maybe the third chapter, I felt like I wasn't really accomplishing anything. The game had already introduced all the enemies and there wasn't a lot of accomplishment to kill the same dressed person again and again and when the variety of enemies stopped, so did the tense nature. I could easily predict when someone was behind me and I could manage my ammo to pretty much take care of everything. I barely replaced my flashlight battery and ammo was abundant.

In short, it was good for a little while, but it just got repetitive.

 

[migo]

Games like Alan Wake all suffer from one major flaw: lack of replayability. The "one and done" model simply isn't as viable as it once was. People only have so much cash to spend on gaming, and if faced with a choice between a game that they'll get 10 hours out of or one they'll get 50 out of, they'll choose the latter more often than not, even if it's a slightly lesser experience. Hard to argue with them, really.

Those kinds of games make great rentals.