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Matthew Krueger (10051 KP) rated Alan Wake in Video Games

Oct 31, 2019 (Updated Oct 31, 2019)

Alan Wake

Action/Adventure

9.0

(4 Ratings)

Video Game Rating

Flash The Darkness Demons

Contains spoilers, click to show

Alan Wake- is one of those games that is highly underrated. It is a great game. It mixs horror with suspense with thrills with adventure and action.

The Plot: The story follows best-selling thriller novelist Alan Wake as he tries to uncover the mystery behind his wife's disappearance during a vacation in the small fictional town of Bright Falls, Washington, all while experiencing events from the plot in his latest novel, which he cannot remember writing, coming to life.

In its pacing and structure, Alan Wake is similar to a thriller television series, with episodes that contain plot twists and cliffhangers. The game itself consists of six episodes, and the storyline is continued by two special episodes, titled "The Signal" and "The Writer", that were made available as downloadable content (DLC) within the same year of the game's release. Together, they make the first season of a possibly longer story. Additionally, a six-episode live-action web series called Bright Falls acts as a prequel to the game, and a number of related books also expand upon the Alan Wake story.

Lets talk about the game: Alan Wake is described by Remedy as "the mind of a psychological thriller" and "the body of a cinematic action game" put together. In interviews, the game's creators hold that the game does not belong squarely in the survival horror video game genre.

The player controls the eponymous protagonist Alan Wake. In the game, a "darkness" is taking over humans, animals and objects. These enemies, dubbed the "Taken", are murderous shadows that attack Wake, wielding weapons of their own, ranging from.

The Taken are protected by a shield of darkness, initially rendering them impervious to attack; they can only be injured with a firearm after exposure to light, which burns the darkness away. This puts significant emphasis on flashlights in conjunction with conventional weapons, such as a revolver or shotgun. Flashlight beams act as a reticle.

The player is often encouraged to take advantage of environmental light sources and placing, and to use other light-based weapons and accessories, such as flare guns, hand-held flares and flashbangs.

So this game mixs survival with fantasy with reality with horror with suspense and so much more.

I would highly reecordmend playing this game.

Kudos

LeftSideCut (3778 KP) rated American Horror Story - Season 6 in TV

Jan 16, 2020

Season 6 of AHS, subtitled Roanoke, may very well be my favourite season to date, if not it comes a very close second to Asylum.

The thing that really stands out for me is the pacing. It's pretty much perfect. The first half of Roanoke takes place in the form of a documentary, called My Roanoke Nightmare, where a young couple who moved into a run down house, recount their horrific experience of the spirits that haunted the ground, and endangered their lives. The documentary has a dramatisation of the events alongside the interviews, which effectively has the same AHS characters being played by two different people.
The build up is slow burning and hugely entertaining, as we know that these characters survive the ordeal, as they are involved in the documentary, so we can enjoy the ride without worrying about their fates.
In true AHS style though, the second half of the season takes place a few years after the documentary, and Roanoke truly kicks off in an epic fashion.
It's hard to properly describe the narrative, and it's really best experienced yourself. It's clever television.

The style of Roanoke is quite subtle, and gives the season a sort of old fashioned sense. It also experiments here and there with 'found footage', lending AHS a Blair Witch-esque edge.

All of the cast are once again great. Kathy Bates is a highlight, both her roles during the documentary, and after. Series regulars like Evan Peters, Angela Bassett and Lily Rabe are present and enjoyable, and it's awesome to see Cuba Gooding Jr. involved as well.
However this time around, AHS belongs to Sarah Paulson, who I thought really excelled during Roanoke, and Adina Porter, who gave the season it's more emotional moments. I think she's a fantastic actress, and was also a standout in her limited screentime during True Blood.

The gore and violence in Roanoke is probably at it's most visceral as far as AHS goes. There are some effectively gruesome moments littered throughout, and it's all looked like practical effects to me, which is how it should be! There are some really creepy shots as well, especially at the tail end of the season.

Roanoke is damn good. I'll be pleasantly surprised if AHS ever surpasses it.