Alan Wake 2 Review: A Thrilling, Tense Masterpiece

mmorpg.com:

Alan Wake 2 is a mindf***. 

Just when you think this story is going to zig, it zags. Even when you lay all of the clues out, connect the dots, and have that «a ha!» moment, this game turns your «a ha!» into a «wait, wha?» It's a thrilling, creepy, tense masterpiece of a story with some truly wild moments, with characters who are believable despite their surreal surroundings. The rest of the game doesn't completely match up, unfortunately, but none of the issues are so bad they can ruin an amazing overall experience. Alan Wake 2 , despite some areas of struggle, is a great time.

Alan Wake 2 follows Saga Anderson, an FBI agent who arrives in a quaint Washington town called Bright Falls in order to investigate a series of ritualistic murders. Her partner, Alex Casey, is a no-nonsense cop who shares a name with the hero of a series of novels written by the titular Alan Wake. Wake, for his part, still finds himself trapped in The Dark Place, which in this game takes the form of a warped New York City infested with hostile shadows.

As with other Remedy games in the past, this game's strongest foundation is its story…or should I say both stories. While the first few missions follow a strict structure, eventually you can switch at will between Saga's investigation in the real world and Alan's attempt to escape The Dark Place. There are 19 missions total – 10 for Saga and nine for Alan – and I can choose to play them however I wish. 

There aren't many games brave enough to let the player fiddle with how the story is told to them, but Alan Wake 2 somehow nails it. No matter how you choose to proceed, the experience will make narrative sense. Questions I had during Saga's half of the story came into sharper focus during Alan's