Alan Wake 2 Is Even Better Than I Expected

Hey Dad,
It's good.
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CHAPTERS
Intro 0:00
Performance 2:54
Story 5:56
Mechanics 8:58
Combat 12:05
Exploration 14:34
Visual Design 15:59
Final Thoughts 17:37

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

Are you excited for Alan Wake 2?

[@Wuggyboobeaufuf138]

No. No one should be supporting the AAA digital-only model. It is inherently anti-consumer, and you're a bad person for helping to promote it.

[@bender9740]

Remedy is not a AAA studio@@Wuggyboobeaufuf138

[@AngriestPeanut]

Hell fuckin no

[@clintcoppieters2173]

Excited for your review that is. Is a Planescape Torment retrospective and complete history ever something you'd cover?

[@TZACHI9]

HELL YEAH. Waited 13 years.

[@Gangster_God]

I love the part where Alan Wake said “You killed my dog”

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

Completely forgot to mention that part

[@rem792]

So this is John Wick: The Awakening?

[@Aren_OverHeaven]

I remember that one time when Alan Wake killed 3 men in a bar, with a pencil, a FUCKING PENCIL

[@RecluseBootsy]

Sommelier: Mr. Wake... may i recommend the latest LED flashlights from Austria. 5000 lumens. A 5 minute battery life. With a 4 battery capacity. For the distinguished gentlemen.

[@jmb9040]

and when he snapped that pencil in half and killed all those demons

[@Acdrop1]

My brother, glad that remedy gave you a code based on your work. Proud of you son

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

Incredibly honored

[@cletokings4302]

Wait, is he your brother and your son🤔

[@thaddeuskent8185]

My cousin! Great comment, my sister!

[@jjdelany8130]

Look, he can't be your brother and son unless you're from the Appalachians. You're throwing out too many euphemisms. You're mixing me all up.

[@jjdelany8130]

​@thaddeuskent8185 uncle grandpa arz.

[@quintinjansevanvuuren9638]

Seeing my boy's channel grow so much really fills me with paternal pride. I love you kiddo, keep up the good work.

[@henrik1743]

The visuals look absolutely STUNNING. I love they embraced more of the visuals from Control with the “holographics”. They look FKN GREAT

[@Slowdough99]

Holographic? No, those are live action cutscenes because Remedy makes transmedia games. Those are live action scenes overlayed onto in game scenes. And it isn't from Control. They've been doing this for a very long time. Quantum Break was their first big overt use of it, but they've been building this idea for many many years.

[@lightningmonky7674]

Yeah playing control and segueing right into Alan Wake 2 was so satisfying

[@frankieh]

Pretty rad they got you the game early honestly, but they need all the exposure they can get this fall, Jesus what a time to play them vidja games.

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

Remedy are true kings

[@CorgiHorgi]

7:17 what a wonderful tribute to the og Max Payne. He looks so great in modern graphics.

[@tharpdown]

Gotta send a shoutout to you Son… this video led me to play through Alan Wake (plus the DLC’s) and straight onward into Alan Wake 2. You helped me discover not only a new series of games, but a series I now consider one of my favorites… THANK YOU

[@hieunguyenrileygekko]

dead space is back now alan wake is back btw i would love to see The evil within retrospective

[@jacobsquare4812]

Very much looking forward to your full video!

[@teedotfoster]

Great recap bro. Definitely excited ever more to check it out

[@davidt3563]

Thank you for doing this spoiler free!! I'm so ready for this game!

[@mattmozgiel2111]

All the funky colored lighting reminds me of Panos Cosmatos "Mandy"

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

There's a ton of True Detective, and Twin Peaks inspiration here as well. A lot of movies in the veins of this game.

[@lightningmonky7674]

Great video considering how much I do you got across without spoilers, I'm impressed

[@GlassThirdEye]

Just started it but its easily one of the best looking games ive ever seen. The detail is phenomenal.

[@gullpayne]

Really looking forward for this - thanks for your upload it topped me over to buy it

[@aettic]

Great review - I'm sorry to hear you encountered the game breaking bug so close to the end (I've heard a couple other people mention this bug, if it's the one I think it is). I picked up the game 4 days after launch and though there were several bugs throughout, none of the were game breaking. Occasionally I'd run into an issue where Taken just wouldn't attack me at all, they would only wander around threateningly, but restarting the game fixed this. What's interesting to me is that so many of the bugs seem to be common on most people's copies (or most of the play throughs I've seen). I'm hoping this means they'll be a bit easier for the devs to track down and fix. I really love this game. It's not perfect by any stretch of the imagination, and the story / gameplay felt way stronger toward the beginning than toward the end, but narratively I think it's one of the most interesting games that I've ever played, let alone in the single player horror genre. I'm a big fan of Twin Peaks, True Detective, Delta Green, and House of Leaves, and this game pushes all those buttons, so I'm kind of a sucker for it. Still working on unraveling the mysteries in my own head, still putting pieces together after the fact (about the big picture), and I'm continually impressed by Remedy's ability to tell such a post-modern tale without verging off into the non-sensical.

[@RecluseBootsy]

My best friend thought it'd be a brilliant idea to eat fungi and have me play the first game as *immersed* as possible... safe to say i ran around in the woods looking for batteries and my wife. When i first realized the pages were just describing what was about to happen, i'd shut em out and keep it pushing. Gotta survive. Need batteries. Must. Find. Wife. To this day, i haven't sat down and actually played it. Yet i'm here to listen to everything you gotta say, son.

[@addictinggamer2066]

You literally went to the dark place of fungi and became Alan wake

[@nojuanatall3281]

The first time I saw someone play portal I was under the cosmic influence. Finding out the cake was a lie had me cracking up.

[@endless2239]

The wait was worth it! 🎉 loved the review son, glad you got a code.

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

Glad you liked it!

[@doomguydemonkiller]

Proud of you Son, looking forward to this game.

[@Tunayer1]

Off-topic, but is there any chance we'll see a deep-dive into The Darkness? That would be a huge undertaking for sure, but sooo worth it I think. Great job, Son

[@AnotherOpinionatedIdiot]

I love you. The darkness is one of my favorite games. I just started replaying it. I wish there was a reboot for both. I know I'm a little biased because I'm a mike patton fangirl, but Jackie is an interesting character, the storyline is entertaining, and the gameplay works. I would love to see a darkness deep dive.

[@ZarinuLoren]

I waited 13 years and I wanna play AW2 but I doubt I'll be able to even run it. Oh well, it happens, I hope there will be some good and thorough no commentary walkthrough. Thank you for the review!

[@captainthunderbolt7541]

Settings seem a little steep... But the game isn't going anywhere.

[@ZarinuLoren]

@@captainthunderbolt7541 True. I waited for 13 years can wait a bit more until I have a chance to upgrade :D

[@RRrr-dt2vi]

Just started playing, and mannnnn that title drop!! The sound/setting actually gave me chills! (Recommend everyone play in complete dark with the sound up)

[@TheMechaMessiah]

Thanks son! I'm already hyped for this for the last 13 years, so I'm glad my favorite for to play it early. See you on the other side.

[@ggandei]

Excellent review. Convinced me to buy it. Thank you

[@spencers360]

A review code! I'm so proud of you son

[@leonardooliveira-pk8xg]

YESSS i'm sooo happy it's goooood thnk god, and thank you for the vid

[@TheSunnyOne]

As you mentioned early on, I'm one of those that has been waiting for 13 years for this game and I am so hyped for it. Saved up for a PS5 that I literally only got a week ago, just so I could play this. AW1, Control, Quantum Break, Max Payne, they're all favourites of mine and I love the interconnected universe they're building (and the sneaky references to games they don't technically own anymore). I'm so happy to see from so many reviews that the game has been worth the wait, even if the deal with Epic has felt like it has lead to some bad decisions and rushed work.

[@Boss_Fight_Wiki_muki_twitch]

Alan Wake 2 could be the underdog 2023 Game of the Year

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

It's got my vote

[@roflc0re]

It could, but it probably won't because most casuals might not be able to enjoy it to the fullest. But ofc I hope Remedy wins GOTY since I love them so fucking much

[@reeshitdey568]

Game Awards will surely give it to spider man 2 which sucks I really want resident evil 4 remake, dead space remake or Alan Wake 2 for the win

[@roflc0re]

@@reeshitdey568 Spider-Man 2 deserves it tho

[@dustydesertdisciple6290]

​@@YourFavoriteSon1You have lost all my respect as a game reviewer bro. You know this game is not no GOTY. Ive watched lots of ypur reviews and thought they were good and hella based. So Its really obvious when one game getz shall we say a good fellating, underserving as its is. Im just 1 sub so whatever at least in not slobbering on that corporate @$!$.

[@iama187er]

Never seen your content, quite impressed

[@Itssorrow666]

I love the part when Alan wake said it’s Alan wakin time

[@clarkmichaels822]

Really excited to play it! When it's released on steam.

[@Sputnik34]

good video son. i set a budget to allow myself this game. i'm very excited to play it :')

[@MisterMoxie7]

I missed the first Alan Wake but really liked my time with Control. Might check this one out just to see Remedy do their thing. Honestly my only concern is whether it overstays its welcome. I never finished Control because it felt like the further I got in the game, the more side content was dumped on me, to the point where my progress just stalled out entirely. I hope AW2 is better in this regard.

[@HighFunctioningMedium]

Absolutely my thought as well. Heard several people already say it def feels padded which I anticipated when Remedy said theyre making longer games to justify the price tag

[@rikorobinson]

I love Remedy. I think they're amazing. But one problem I have with them is I'll find a bug, go online to see if anyone else has and find out tons of people have experienced that bug, then play the same game YEARS later just to find the bug is still there. Like the map bug and Control where the details just stop displaying. I'd restart the game and it would just happen again. Literally every single time. To boot up the game a couple of years later and find it STILL happening was infuriating. Especially with CONTROL; the game where the map is brilliantly confusing intentionally, because it makes sense for the story. Yeah, thanks for giving me a map that gitches out and makes it impossible to cross the street, let alone navigate The Oldest House. And I've noticed that with a few bugs in Remedy's games. They just don't patch some of the big ones and just leave them out in the wild...

[@Duckman8213]

I’m playing this at midnight on my PS5! No work tomorrow boys!

[@randomhairline1797]

I’m about 3 hours in and I’m loving it, it’s so dark gritty and atmospheric. It was worth the 13 year wait

[@withwithout8287]

The atmosphere is soooo good. I love it a lot, it reminds me of the RE2 remake, with how gritty it is.

[@RazorBladezX]

Son , I can’t wait for you to cover this !!

[@FPoP1911]

Son getting review copy from remedy... now this is a cozy sonny day in the middle of autumn.

[@WitcherOfGalicia]

for me this is the most anticipated game of the year

[@JMsolidsnake]

So happy the wait was worth it. Loved Alan Wake 1

[@sunburn21]

Luke also has same hard lock at end of game and he's unable to compete the game.

[@rometherevenant8749]

Youve come far son

[@maxchronicler]

Can't wait to play this game

[@linux_for_noobs]

Bought it on ps5, I would have preferred pc but I'm not sure if it's coming to steam at all and I'm not going to make epic account just for one game

[@captainthunderbolt7541]

I'm in the same situation as you.

[@AlexanderGriff]

Hell yeah man ,nice 🥂

[@shahrouh]

I love Alan Wake. It's the main reason I bought an Xbox One years ago alongside my PS4. I also played American Nightmare but the original was just so darn good with its characters, atmosphere, narration, everything came together just so well. My controversial opinion is, as a whole, I preferred the original even to this sequel. I did finish the sequel, and thought it had frightfully good atmosphere and brought the universe together, tying it even closer than before. The sequel allowed for a lot of depth in exploration and infinite stamina, which is great. But there's just something that felt missing which the original did so well. Maybe it was because I preferred the characters in the first a bit more, like Barry (who injected some awesomely placed humor), Sheriff Breaker, Phil Hartmann etc. Maybe it was the fact that I was getting upgraded flashlights to more effectively battle the darkness. Maybe its because I preferred the original's thriller gameplay. Or maybe it's because I experienced a lot of bugs in the sequel, including one, which as of the latest patch, made 100% completion of trophies/achievements unobtainable, made it hard to maneuver through Alan's inventory, made it so that things glitched in his inventory, things glitched in Saga's mind palace, or made Saga unable to pull out a weapon while getting attacked in several sequences. I experienced no such amount of issues in the original. I feel that the sequel had stellar moments in it, none of which I'll mention, but it did have some moments which felt like a bit of a slog to go through. It is much more survival horror, which I normally like, but I never saw a reason to fight enemies, and just run, unless I was forced to fight, otherwise it would just put a strain on resources and health items, (which is most probably the point). In terms of plot, I understood much of the sequel, yet the original was shrouded largely in mystery, which made that game that much more appealing to me. All in all, the sequel is a masterpiece in its own right, because of what is included in the game not so much where the narrative really takes us. Alan Wake's sequences were interesting but started to feel largely repetitive to me, and Saga, while interesting, felt quite a bit dry compared to the other characters. Maybe I'm nitpicking too much but I do feel the original set a bar for me that hasn't been reached in terms of narrative horror storytelling. And whether it was the bugs listed above or the other elements in the original that came so well, I'd rank the original somewhat higher than the sequel despite the obvious gameplay and graphical improvements in AW2. All that said Son, looking forward to your deepdive video.

[@ags8507]

not going to watch since iwant to experience everything firsthand but i just hope pc version is playable lol, one of my favorite videogame essay youtube channels, gj job son

[@jessicaw7563]

Do enemies respawn in the open areas while exploring or are they gone forever when you kill them leaving the world empty

[@devak45167]

I will absolutely buy this game and am stoked to play it but I think I can’t justify a day 1 purchase when I’m hearing so much about bugs, especially the game breaking bug at the end that won’t let you finish. Hope Remedy pushes out patches fast and furious

[@TheHijabiGamer]

I am planning to play the first game then maybe get the second. Your video got me interested in the first game. Though as a Destiny player the enemy being called Taken 😂 Even though I know Alan Wake came out first. 😺

[@nojuanatall3281]

I need to finish the first and then I'm all over this on PC.

[@Spongedude1441]

Son, I'm so proud of you for getting a review code. You deserve it

[@appleztooranges]

Loved this game. Haven’t played the first one but damn I felt like it was resident evil but scarier

[@gemini7248]

Did you happen to play on performance or quality mode?

[@liammacdonald7101]

Please do the Alan wake 2 retrospective!

[@gowary]

Luke Stephens ran into a hard lock too, wondeeing if it was the same as you

[@pdpMASTERP]

Finally a game in 2023 that runs better on PC than console

[@QuestionableLifeChoices]

When playing as alan, you spend most of your time literally jumping at shadows, occasionally getting jumped by them 😂

[@mypocketshurt646]

Man, nice to see a quick review of a new game from you.

[@skydus7]

Son, you make me the proudest father. Thank you for coming out of my testicles. Love you, Dad.

[@EvilGeniusRANIK]

I heard from Gman that the game is more of a walking simulator and not many combat scenarios. Is this true? If not, how much of the game is the combat? 30% 20%?

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

I couldn't give a percentage, but the combat encounters are quite spaced out. I personally think that making the enemies more challenging and less frequent adds to the horror, but that's going to be a preference thing.

[@captainthunderbolt7541]

@@YourFavoriteSon1 I felt like combat was a little bit overdone in the first game. Like, combat sections shouldn't be long enough that you grow tired of them. I hope that calling it a walking sim was a bit of an exaggeration tho, because I definitely think that at least 40% of the game content should be gameplay.

[@leoSaunders]

12:05 story 10/10 combat 4/10 . I wish they had done something new with combat. like no Speedy Gonzalez enemies and no loot ammo. maybe something with crafting or with the light mechanic. Or maybe like Death Stranding where you evade enemies rather than confronting them.

[@RecluseBootsy]

The talk show looks straight out of Todd Philip's Joker.

[@jerrydinoballs]

You make me want to be a better man

[@cameronpavelic500]

Considering how meta Remedy is, I wouldnt be surprised if the UI looking like the REmakes was intentional.

[@Wishuna]

How long would you say the game is?

[@TheCivildecay]

I'm 3 hours in and these are my thoughts: - I really like how the game goes all in on the weirdness - I love the gritty new direction it takes -the gameplay is really solid But: - I don't like that we are no longer able to drive cars

[@oscargomezrivera]

I thought that bg3 was game of the year but this is a close second

[@hulkhogan5807]

Really worth it i pre ordered the game i really love it

[@inthedeadhours]

that table glitch at the end of the game is a real bitch. You can get past it with a chair though

[@Jessica-qy1kz]

It looks alright but LotR Gollum still my GoTY ❤

[@RvkKJ]

How is the performance on mid tier cards like 3080 or 3070?

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

I played the game on PS5 so I can't speak to that.

[@princessspacetime1763]

idk if you found your answer in the last 4 months, but i played with 3080 and it was ok on performance. one big thing to know is it MUST be on SSD , otherwise it's garbage. Still very playable for me and i loved it. I got audio desync in most cutscences i think, but the actual gameplay was fine.

[@RvkKJ]

​@@princessspacetime1763 finished it in the first 2 days. I have a 3080 too.

[@tomdarbyshire1703]

Alan Wake 2 is GOTY glad you enjoyed it Son! :)

[@daphne8406]

I am really looking forward to playing this game! But it is such a pity it does not have a physical release 😔 It is very much a proper sequel to Alan Wake 1 and very much a Remedy game 😂 If you do not enjoy either of those two things, you will probably not get or enjoy this game 🤷‍♀️

[@Abracadaniels]

I haven't watched your video yet, but from the other video and written reviews, there is very little talk about the actual gameplay other than its inspired by Resident Evil. How can it be described better?? Is it like Evil Within1 or 2, RE4, or is it a linear experience like the original game and mostly focused on the story and a little shooting or something completely different?

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

I talk about this in the video

[@dustydesertdisciple6290]

Its not like any of those games. Its is garbage did. This fool is lying man.

[@animecat3556]

Alan Wake? I mean, I'd hope he'll wake up.

[@gomesbopeable]

To anyone in doubt, I've been playing the game and greatly enjoying it but the game progression breaking bug is still there, so I advise not to play it until they patch it

[@Slugonthese]

Last time I came this early my girlfriend broke up with me

[@itsanoformedawg]

Lmao

[@dialgon7170]

we definitely need a proper analysis video

[@RecentCobra]

From the small bits I've seen it does seem like the combat is better, which was the weakest part of Alan Wake for me

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

For the most part, every aspect has been improved.

[@captainthunderbolt7541]

@@YourFavoriteSon1 Please tell me that the character arsenals don't keep resetting like in the first game!

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

@@captainthunderbolt7541 Nope, you keep your weapons and equipment.

[@captainthunderbolt7541]

@@YourFavoriteSon1 Excellent!

[@CageofRageTV]

Good video son, but i just realized you never did a video on Alan Wake American Nightmare any reason why? Would love to see your thoughts on it.

[@YourFavoriteSon1]

I covered that in my Remedy video

[@chrisliles1668]

its a awesome game

[@gowary]

Wheres the switch version? 👀🤭

[@dallesamllhals9161]

..define "in a while"? 2023 = GREAT! How?

[@AAWinnerMichaelCaine]

2:00 Game of the year 🤣? The same year that both Super Mario Wonder and Tears of the Kingdom released? Is there a doctor in the house 🫨?

[@Eener1000]

Alan Wake 2 being better then expected isn't a surprise since the first game was absolute pretentious pants, I had no expectations to begin with.

[@sionteemo9697]

Gonna finish the game tonight and man.. the game definitely did not dissappoint at all after the long wait for a sequel. This year has be CRAZY with great games left and right ...

[@yuno_k]

The story is a little bit fast in the first 2 chapters in my opinion I mean Saga and Alex take finding supernatural things way easily yeah they did see a guy walking without his heart but still

[@ericlapierre3526]

My man is shill like I have never seen. This game was hot doggy doo doo.

[@AquaticBagpipe]

Deluded

[@challengingyou212]

It runs at a very unstable 30 fps in quality mode on ps5 which is pretty much unbearable. I find it absurd that you played this on quality mode the whole way. I also think the bugs are far more of an issue than you let on. Especially visual bugs like the lighting just not working at all half the time. If its daytime the shadows are always finnicky.

[@challengingyou212]

And this is with patches. i just dont really believe you played this on quality mode without having a seizure

[@killjoy99444]

I’m about 7 hours in and this is my pick for game of the year. Slaps around Spider-Man like a misbehaving step child. I really like the first Alan wake. And adored control. I’m an absolute nerd for the SCP content. I really hope they lean harder into the control/scp type games. The best analogy I’ve heard about this was comparing control to an ikea cubby shelf, and Alan wake 2 fills up one of those cubbies. They have so much extra space to expand on this universe.

[@zer00rdie]

30 and 60 fps. Oof, so close consoles, by 2007 standards.

[@bigkongus]

pity it's an epic exclusive so i'll never play it

[@KotoCrash]

I dont want to play as her

[@ISEESPACEMONKEYS00]

Resident evil 4, Starfield, and now Alan Wake 2. Great year!

[@cchristianjeremy]

Starfield?

[@techh9171]

​@@cchristianjeremyyep great game why you didn't like it?

[@robslams2324]

@@techh9171goyfield

[@watchmehope6560]

SF feels so dated lol. Sorry man.

[@Treayom]

"2023 has been Chalkfull of the best releases we've seen in a while.." What games are you referring to?! Other than Baldurs gate all new releases in 2023 were trash, unfinished, óverhyped, bad games. D4 was gonna be GOTY, a months later 90% of the players left. Starfield at launch was gonna be GOTY, a months later every left. And Alan wake also is a pretty but mid game at best.

[@salmark9080]

That’s lame that you play as Alan less. That’s not a decision that had to be made lol they could’ve done something different

[@trig2012]

Blurring the lines between "graphics" and "poor optimization"