Alan wake

[StatiK TactiK]

Finally starting to get into this game now. Pretty good. The gameplay seems like it would get a but repetitive from what I've seen so far but the story has me hooked. I'm definitely glad I picked it up

[Murgatroyd7]

I still need to play this one. Heck, it has taken me this long just to start Mass Effect 2. And then I've got a couple of other games...but then this will be at the top of the list.

[Raymo]

I still need to play this one. Heck, it has taken me this long just to start Mass Effect 2. And then I've got a couple of other games...but then this will be at the top of the list.

oh man, I really dug Mass Effect 2 I hope you enjoy it. Hell, if I had to pick out the best games of this year, it would be Red Dead, Mass Effect 2 and Alan Wake in no apparent order

[Murgatroyd7]

So far this year, it's Mafia II for me. That one took me by surprise. But I am definitely enjoying Mass Effect 2...although I don't think it's quite as good as the first one (not that it's bad by any means, of course).

[StatiK TactiK]

The story was the biggest downfall of ME2 for me. The first was so epic in scope while the second was just collecting team members and helping them solve their little problems 80% of the time. That was a big issue for me since the story was the main draw for me but everything else trumped ME1 IMO. For that reason alone, RDR is GOTY for me so far.

[Murgatroyd7]

Well, for me, the heart of ME's story is in the character's. I don't think the main story of either game is particularly interesting. I've already seen enough sci-fi to expect this stuff. But the background and character storylines are really fascinating to me. I do, however, think it's a bit lame that I'm just spending most of my time gathering a posse. I mean, come on, this isn't Mighty Ducks.

The main things that bug me are the lack of side missions (there were a lot more in the first), the removal of the inventory system, the inability to switch my "weapons loadout", scanning planets instead of landing on them (exploring with the Mako was my favorite part of ME1), and the weird new characters. I can't stand Jack or Zaeed, nor am I very fond of Miranda. I also don't like Grunt all that much; Wrex was way cooler. I do like Jacob and Mordin, though, and the rivalry between Joker and EDI is pretty funny. But I gotta say, all of this stuff with the Illusive Man is really silly, even for sci-fi. Oh well, I'm still enjoying it.

[StatiK TactiK]

There are about half as many sidequests but most of them are hard to find, tucked away in clusters you'd never even get close to unless you were exploring. But they were all unique compared to the cookie cutter missions in ME1 so I didn't mind at all. Also if you want more Mako-like missions, get the Firewalker pack (free through the Cerberus network if you bought the game new) or Overlord DLC where you can drive the Hammerhead. And yeah Mordin is my favorite and has the best dialogue by far. I died when he started singing Gilbert and Sullivan.

Edit: ha I almost forgot the reason why I came here in the first place. Just finished Alan Wake and damn that was a great game. The music, story telling and voice acting were fantastic and the episodic format was awesome. Very fresh. Even the combat grew on me when I thought earlier it would get repetitive. Very unexpected but this is right behind RDR and ME2 as GOTY for me. Highly recommend anyone who hasn't played this game to give it a shot.

[Murgatroyd7]

You have a point; the missions are a bit more meaningful and interesting this second time around. But for me, it doesn't matter how hard it is to find them 'cause I use a checklist (with locations) to ensure I'm able to play every mission. Heh. And honestly, I guess I actually kinda like that there are fewer missions. After playing Borderlands for a million hours and doing every side quest (in the main game; haven't finished all DLC), I'm pretty sick of 'em.

Oh, and I actually just started the Overlord DLC last night...haven't made it to the Hammerhead part yet, though.



Anyway...back to Alan Wake! Sorry for derailing the topic!

[Murgatroyd7]

I thought I'd mention that I finally started playing Alan Wake. I haven't been feeling well enough to write (I thought it was regular food poisoning, but it turned out to be giardiasis) so I finished up a couple of games and I'm about a third of the way through Alan Wake. I'm really, really liking it so far. There are way too many collectibles, but aside from that, this is a great game. I don't even care how unoriginal it is because it has such good production values!

[DeYanKees1]

Glad your liking it, it was a top 5 game for me last year. I should finish my Nightmare run through and do the DLC's but I have to many games to play at the moment.

[StatiK TactiK]

Ditto. Top 5 of 2010 for sure. Highly underrated game IMO.

[Murgatroyd7]

Oh believe me, I definitely know the feeling, Yank. I've got a huge stack of games that I still need to play. It's why I keep hoping all of the developers will just take a break for a few months. Heh.

[ItsEvan]

Not to rain on your guys' parade, but I didn't think it was a really great game. Yeah, it's presentation was good and storytelling was pretty unique from my perspective, but the gameplay wasn't that scary nor thrilling and having to point a flashlight for five seconds before shooting got repetitive really fast. It felt more like a puzzle game rather than a shooter because you had to make target priorities first. Plus, after traveling through one dark infested forest, you've traveled through them all.

[Murgatroyd7]

It all depends on how you look at it, I guess. To me, it's a good thing that it's not primarily a shooter because shooters get so boring to me. There are some that I enjoy, yes, but I much prefer to fight strategically. Some of my favorite parts have actually been segments in which you don't even have a gun.

The scenery is all the same, but it's hard to avoid that when doing a story like this and trying to maintain a realistic setting. I do wish we got to spend more time in the town, but aside from that, I haven't really had any issues with seeing the same things over and over again. I guess it helps that it looks like where I used to live, so it reminds me of some of our long hikes through the woods. So, although I can see why it might be boring/repetitive, I actually get a kick out of it.

As for not being thrilling or scary...well, I can't really argue with that one. There have been a couple of creepy parts, but it's not really all that scary and I can usually tell when something is about to happen. Games rarely manage to freak me out, though. For me, the main appeal of Alan Wake is that it sets up a great atmosphere. The story's not the least bit original and it's quite predictable, but I really enjoy myself while playing even it isn't anything all that special.

[StatiK TactiK]

It got more intense playing on th hardest difficulty (can't remember the name ATM). So many enemies come at you and each takes so many shots to kill, nevermind having to focus the light on them for longer before you can shoot. Combined with ammo being more scarce makes for some intense sequences where you can't do much but run and occassionally turn to shine and shoot to slow them down. Really felt like a horror movie or something in that sense. While maybe not scary, it's definitely more intense. That's the only way to truly experience Alan Wake IMHO.