This week I also had the privilege of getting hands on with Alan Wake, in an extended preview which took place in London.
Following a brief introduction to the game, we were then given a chance to play the extended demo which introduced the story as described in Dan's article above, however given that this demo was a lot longer than the one we played at X10, I also got to see some amazing scenes which Dan wasn't privy too.
As described by Dan, all of the action is dark and light based. A story Alan has written is becoming true and a dark force has overtook Bright Falls. Throughout this particular adventure my character was trying to reach the petrol station in order to call for help, unfortunately there where all manner of enemies who were determined to stop me, as well as the other obstacles such as broken stairs and fast flowing rivers.
When you encounter a creature they are surrounded by a darkness which can only be broken by torchlight or flare. Therefore when you meet one of these creature you must shine your torch at them in order to remove the darkness, this will then enable you to shoot them down using any of your weapons, which for me consisted of a handgun and later on a shotgun.
One of the great things about Alan Wake is that it adjusts to the skills of the player, therefore if you didn't manage to kill all of the creatures without taking a hit in one chapter then in the next the game will go a bit easier on you, however if you did then they will come at you with more force. An example of this was shown to us straight at the start when he developer was playing, he managed to get through the first part of the game fairly easily, then in the second he was pounded by poltergeist, which he duly dispatched with a flare.
Throughout the game you are met with all sorts of puzzles, such as having to find a way to cross, or having to find generators in order to switch on power. You will also need to make sure you are stocked up on ammo and energizer batteries for your torch, as without the torch and a weapon you really have nowhere to run.
There are points in the game where you are completely surrounded by creatures, but thankfully all is not lost as should you by injured you simply step under a street lamp and your health will replenish. There are also loads of coffee thermos’s lying about to collect, however when I asked about these I was told “no comment”, interesting.
I have to say that I was very impressed with the chapter of the game I played, the presentation was absolutely fantastic as you would expect and my only concern, like Dan was with the cutscenes which didn't quite seem up to the same standard.
So yeah, like I say the chapter I played was very impressive indeed, however just as I was about to stand up one of the Remedy developers had a surprise. Prompting me to press the button he said "You haven't played the rock level yet", intrigued I pushed B and was greeted with Alan and his agent standing on a rock stage, and what was to come has convinced me that this could very well be one of the best games around this year.
With Alan's agent and friend standing at the lighting deck, Alan was left to deal with the oncoming horde of enemies, however he was also surrounded by a near unlimited arsenal of weapons and ammo. With Rock music blasting in the background, fireworks going off at all angles and the stage lighting flashing as I shot down the creatures this has to be one of the most fulfilling and impressive scenes I have ever played in a game and I tell you what, if there are more scenes like this in store for us then Alan Wake is going to be the must have game of the year.
Aivan mahtavaa. Muutoinkin acheista päätellen pelissä on todella otettu mukaan tämä Twin Peaksin hyvän kahvin arvostus.
