Alan Wake's American Nightmare

I wanted this game to be more of the Alan Wake that I feel in love, with but I'm going to tell you right now that this is not the case. This game takes the power of the flashlight, and the guns, and turns it into a third person shooter. The lack of real depth also strikes at my heart. The story is that you are trapped in a nightmare, but with your actions you can break free of that reality.

Graphically the game almost stands up to the 360 version. The cut scenes are done with live actors, and the lack of emotion shown in said cut scenes doesn't help this game at all. There is a wide range on enemies to fend, off and I have to say that I was impressed by the variety that was given on that front.

The sounds of the game, how should I put this, you better like because you're going to hear them a lot. It could be the radio show, the TVs, the character's dialog. There's a whole lot of repetition in this game, and some of it gets old quickly.

The controls of the game are one thing that is solid. Sure you might not be able to perfect dodge out of an attack, but realistically the majority of the time its just about moving. You'll have the d-pad to switch between weapons. You'll have the other buttons to pick up an item, reload your gun, jump, or insert a new battery into your flashlight.

I was so excited to hear that the Alan Wake experience was going to be extended, but this is not what I had in mind. You're stuck in a town in Arizona, damned to replay the same night over and over again until everything is just right and you have defeated an evil manifestation of yourself. You'll have to talk to the same people over and over again. You'll have to visit the same locations again and again, and you'll have to deal with stronger and bigger waves of enemies as you replay sections. If I wanted the shooting part of Alan Wake, then I think I would have really enjoyed this game, but I played Alan Wake for the story, and the creepy vibes. This game does have a story, and at first it was ok, but having to do re-runs of the story makes it weaker each time through. The creepy vibes also felt cheap, the only time I got on edge is when I forgot to make sure nothing was coming from behind me.

If you're looking for a dumbed down version of Alan Wake, with an emphasis on the combat, this game is for you, otherwise I recommend trying to find some fan fiction to get yourself lost in because this game is not going to cut it. This game gets a 5.4 out of 10.