Alan Wake, The Writer Review

Written by: Psyko113   

We now have the second (and reportedly final) DLC for Alan Wake. Since the controls and such remain the same as they did in the core game, I won't go into any of that. Instead, we'll get straight to the meat of things.

"The Writer" takes place after the first DLC content, The Signal (appropriate, right?), and deals more with Wake knowing he's in the Dark Place. Guided by both Zane and his mental projection of his best-friend/agent Barry, Wake traverses the dreamlike landscape that he's apparently creating for himself to reach his ultimate goal: a shot at freedom.

There's a lot more dealings with concepts of metaphysics and dream theory going on in this one, as well as more psychology dealing with concepts of fractured psyche and multiple perceptions. Very interesting, and a great opportunity for some depth to the character and story that would have better been suited for exploration in something other than a brief DLC.

The action this time around gets pretty intense. Things seem incredibly threatening to Wake on scales that the core game never presented. I recall saying something similar regarding the approach to the Fallen in The Signal, and The Writer takes that a couple levels further. And, as all of us must do toward the end, Wake has make some hard decisions regarding exactly who's presented as his enemies in the Dark Place by the end (again, something that would have been better explored in a larger venue).

Everything is on par with the other variations of the game, so the environments are lush and well laid out, even if they're more chaotic this time around (with Wake's new knowledge of how the Dark Place works, it seems that it doesn't bother to even try to fake being reality after a point). The nightmare Wake finds himself in feels that much more daunting, even.

Overall, it's a fitting ending, and leads to the possibility of Remedy making a sequel to the game, which would be awesome!

Plus, you can't go wrong when you've got Depeche Mode as part of the soundtrack!