Alan Wake

Alan Wake is a 2010 action-adventure game developed by Remedy Entertainment and published by Microsoft Game Studios. The game was released in May 2010 for the Xbox 360, with a Windows version following in February 2012 and a remastered version released for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and Windows in October 2021, as well as a Nintendo Switch version in October 2022. The story follows bestselling crime thriller novelist Alan Wake as he tries to uncover the mystery behind his wife's disappearance during a vacation in the small fictional town of Bright Falls, Washington, all while experiencing events from the plot of his latest novel, which he cannot remember writing, coming to life.

In its pacing and structure, Alan Wake is similar to a thriller television series, with episodes that contain plot twists and cliffhangers. The game consists of six episodes, and the storyline continues in two special episodes, The Signal and The Writer, that were made available as downloadable content (DLC) in the year of the game's release. Additionally, a six-episode live-action web series called Bright Falls acts as a prequel to the game, and a number of related books also expand upon the Alan Wake story.

Written by Sam Lake and Mikko Rautalahti, Alan Wake took over five years to create. The game was originally developed as an open-world survival game as an antithesis to Remedy's prior linear Max Payne games, but the team struggled over three years to merge the gameplay with an action-thriller story. In two months, the team reworked the game into a more traditional linear game with an episodic approach that better supported the planned narrative structure, and which allowed the team to reuse previously created open-world assets.

The game received positive reviews from critics, has garnered a cult following, and is often praised for its visuals, sound, narrative, pacing and atmosphere. It was awarded the first spot in Time magazine's list of the top 10 video games of 2010. Alan Wake's American Nightmare, a stand-alone spin-off, was released in February 2012 on the Xbox Live Arcade service. A cancelled sequel became the foundation of Remedy's next title, Quantum Break. Later, Remedy released Control in 2019, which takes place in a shared universe with Alan Wake. A sequel, Alan Wake 2, was released in 2023.

Alan Wake is described by Remedy as "the mind of a psychological thriller" and "the body of a cinematic action game" put together. In interviews, the game's creators hold that the game does not belong squarely in the survival horror video-game genre. The game is primarily set in the fictional idyllic small town of Bright Falls, Washington. The main gameplay happens in various areas of Bright Falls—such as the forest, a national park, or a farm—during the night time; these are punctuated by calmer, non-combative sequences set during the day.

The player controls the eponymous protagonist Alan Wake, a well-known novelist who is going through writer's block. In the game, a "darkness" is taking over humans, animals, and objects. These enemies, dubbed the "Taken", are murderous shadows that attack Wake, wielding weapons of their own, ranging from mallets and knives to shovels and chainsaws. They vary by speed, size and the amount of damage they can take, and some can teleport short distances. Besides the Taken, the player must combat flocks of possessed ravens and animated objects. When enemies are close, Alan can perform a slow-motion cinematic dodge maneuver.

The Taken are protected by a shield of darkness, initially rendering them impervious to attack; they can only be injured with a firearm after exposure to light, which burns the darkness away. This puts significant emphasis on flashlights in conjunction with conventional weapons, such as a revolver or shotgun. Flashlight beams act as a reticle. The handheld lights Wake can carry can be boosted, which destroys the darkness faster, but also reduces the light's battery level. Besides the conventional shooter gameplay need for reloading ammunition, the player must also insert fresh batteries into the flashlight when they run out, or wait for it to recharge slowly. The strength of the darkness protecting an enemy can vary among the Taken. The amount of darkness "shield" remaining on an enemy is represented by a corona of light that appears when aiming at an enemy. Instead of traditional health bars, this shield is represented by a circle that decreases in diameter as it weakens. A stronger darkness may recharge after exposure to light over time. When a Taken is finally destroyed, it disappears.

The player is often encouraged to take advantage of environmental light sources and places, and to use other light-based weapons and accessories, such as flare guns, hand-held flares and flashbangs. Wake can use searchlights to take out massive waves of Taken. Streetlights and other light stands can provide a safe haven, which the Taken cannot enter, and will regenerate the character's health faster. Otherwise, health regenerates slowly with time, when not taking any damage. In certain sections of the game, it is possible to use a car to traverse between locations in Bright Falls. When in a car, the player can run down Taken on the road, or boost the vehicle's headlights to destroy them.