With fans revved up to go after the release date of October 17th was announced for Alan Wake 2, developer Remedy Entertainment has released some new info on the upcoming sequel, including the introduction of new characters, their take on the survival-horror genre including new monsters, different environments to fight your way through, and more.
Given the fact that players have been chomping at the bit for over a decade in the hopes of a sequel, Remedy has a lot to deliver but it looks like Alan Wake 2 is ready to go mainstream, following the more recent formula that has made games like Resident Evil 4 Remake such a smash-hit.
One of the elements that make these games so successful is their roster of well-rounded and well-written characters, and on that front, Alan Wake 2 doesn’t want to disappoint. In addition to the titular writer, players will also take on the role of playable protagonist Saga Anderson, an FBI Special Agent known for her unrivaled ability to solve the toughest cases.
Saga arrives in Bright Falls to investigate the circumstances surrounding Special Agent Nightingale’s death from the first game and is called in to identify a perp. Players will understand why Saga’s story interweaves with Alan’s throughout the course of the game, as well as listen to her inner thoughts, spelled out in a synchronous way to Alan’s theatrical narration.
While Alan is still the main protagonist of the game, the story is split between playing as him as well as Saga, and players will have the option to choose which protagonist they want to play as first.
According to Remedy’s communications director Thomas Puha via the PlayStation Blog:
After certain events have transpired, fans can play Wake and Anderson’s respective stories in any order they choose. Their journeys echo and foreshadow each other, in this intense atmospheric story, taking players on two separate dark and disturbing paths. We are excited to allow players to decide how to experience the story of Alan Wake 2.
Melanie Liburd, the motion-capture actress chosen by Remedy for the role of Saga, adds:
Once you start playing it, it makes sense why she appears and why she needs to be there. Because she does need to be there. Alan needs Saga, and Saga needs Alan. And that is the main thing that fans will understand when they see her…we talked about it from the beginning, how she’s such a well-rounded, full character even from the page that Sam [Lake] created.
So it was just a really fun experience to discover more about her–what a great mother she is, and really what a geek she is about her job. She’s so into it and so passionate about what she does, which adds to the humor, you know, because she’s kind of crazy. She’ll walk into something that’s terrifying and just thrive off it.
According to Sam Lake, Saga is no superhero but is capable, brilliant, and passionate about her work. However, she and Alan will still be staring down horrors unforeseen and unlike those from the original game. Saga Anderson will have to go beyond anything she’s seen on the job to date.
In Alan Wake 2, the darkness feels like it’s bubbling out of the proverbial cauldron and invading places it’s never touched before. Everything about the game is set to deliver a bigger and scarier experience than the original.
You can pre-order the game on the Epic Games Store for PC, as well as on Xbox Series S|X and PlayStation 5.
