controls are so slow, like crawling in the dark with a torch. i couldnt even get past the first level, no way worth the money with so many other things on offer.
maybe in 2012 it was okay for its graphics etc.
As other most critical reviews have said, "This IS a BORING game".
Not even the story is able to catch you, forcing yourself to go through all this suffering (I've watched the entire story on Youtube and discovered that finishing this game to know the ending is not even worth it )
Alan Wake on its announcement was supposed to be an open world game with investigative mechanics similar to deadly premonition in the concept.
Instead (I'm going to repeat what the other most negative reviewers said) it is an extremely linear game, you are really going on a straight line in this game with zero decisions and freedom. But I have to say that this is not bad, indeed we have a lot of games that are "linear titles" also if not in an exaggerated way as AW. RE 4, RE 5, Outlast are all games that require a linear progession, but they are enjoiable
So the real problem of AW is in the variety as stated before by others what you will do for the first 4 h IS (and it is only the beginning):
1- watching a cutscenes of 5 min with worthless conversations (the most enjoiable thing in this game by the way)
2- running around in a lot of woods fallowing a straight path and collecting batteries for the torch.
3- fighting darkness stupid mountaineers and yokels, using the light of the torch and your pistol, while you are intent to avoid their axes (the machanics is not funny and the effect of the torch on the enemies is annoying).
4- REPEAT.
And I'm not joking this is what you do for the first 4h of game because this is what I've done in the first 4h of the game before quitting, ironically I was fainally out of the wood after 4h of boring agony and for 5 min I was happy to be in a new location, but then during a cutscene the police surround you and you jump again in the damn wood. There is were I've quitted, and I'm only at the beginning of the game because this game is more than 10h that you will spend running around in the wood (just watch a youtube video to get confirm).
This game's got great graphics, cool sound and one little problem: it's absolutely boring! Nothing to do but always running down a forest path and shooting at kind of hillbilly ghosts. I gave this game two tries but always had to quit after 1-2 hours beause of deadly dullness. No comparison to Resident Evil or Silent Hill. So if you're looking for a thrilling survival horror action adventure- stay away from this botch and spare your money!
Good games that do work as an interactive movie and as a fun computer game are hard to come by. How does Alan Wake handle this challenge? Not very well in my opinion. The game component is too repetitive and cannot surprise with innovation, while the story part is without verve and driven by wooden and bloodless characters. While the story tries hard and in vain to imitate the Stephen-Kingey ways, the only innovation at the 3DShooter-front is that you now have to remove the 'evil force shields' of the zombies with a flashlight before you can shoot them real-dead. Seriously? It is made clearly without the necessary heart or commitment that is the hallmark of a great game - a profit machine at best. And then, it is a M$-game. Can it be anything else than a shallow imitation full of stereotypes? In conclusion, it deserves a "waste of time warning".
Protip: If one wants to enjoy an interactive movie with a compelling and atmospheric story which boasts at the same time an impressive game mechanics and an adult feel to it, he is much better off playing Vampire: the Masquerade Bloodlines (VtMB).