If you are like me, you would have been waiting since 2010 and Alan Wake’s original Xbox 360 release to discover the next happenings of bestselling thriller novelist who has found themselves trapped in the dark place. While developer Remedy Entertainment moved on to other projects including 2016s Quantum Break and 2019s Control – fans held hopes that the adventures around Bright Falls would continue, and in late-2021, confirmation of Alan Wake 2 confirmed that it would.
Remedy Entertainment used the PlayStation Showcase livestream this morning to both announce the game’s full release date – 17 October 2023 – and also share some new details and trailer around the game.
While you can read the full statement shared by Thomas Puha, Communications Director at Remedy Entertainment via the official PlayStation Blog, below is a quick summary of the points raised:
- The game has been developed as a next-generation experience for PlayStation 5, with detailed visuals and action using Remedy’s Northlight engine.
- It’s designed to be approachable for new players who haven’t played the first game, while also catering to long-standing fans of the series.
- The game features two protagonists: Alan Wake, the horror writer from the original game, and a new character, FBI agent Saga Anderson.
- Bright Falls returns as the main setting of the game.
- Anderson arrives to investigate the murders and finds herself in a nightmare scenario with events of a horror story unfolding around her.
- Players can experience Wake and Anderson’s stories in any order, offering two separate dark and disturbing narrative paths.
- The game features many “hand-crafted”, “unique” locations to explore. Anderson’s story takes place in the Pacific Northwest, consisting of three hubs: the small town of Bright Falls, the stunning primordial forest surrounding the mysterious Cauldron Lake, and the run-down town of Watery. On the other hand, Wake’s story takes place in the shifting, looping reality of the Dark Place.
In development for the PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and PC platforms, Alan Wake 2 will release on 17 October 2023. If you haven’t played the original, a remastered version is now available.
