General Gaming Alan Wake II (PS5/Xbox Series/EGS) - update: upcoming patch (03/06) drastically improves GTX 10-series performance

[AbsolutSurgen]

5 minutes ago, ShreddieMercury said:

 

Oh I wasn't even commenting on what you said, that was just my general thought about the writing.  I agree that the story itself is compelling and really interesting.  But it does exhibit some of the typical shared universe/superhero issues of constantly evolving rules and a lack of stakes because nothing is real.  Or it becomes real sometimes but just kidding it's not anymore.

I agree with this completely.

3 minutes ago, Greatoneshere said:

 

Probably too easy for my tastes, I played on hard and found I had to be more selective with my inventory and the enemies were definitely more numerous and harder to kill, making the gameplay more enjoyable. I found the gameplay to feel punchy and heavy and have weight to it, which was refreshing at least. To some degree it's meant to be a little jank since it's a survival horror game so it's not going to feel particularly slick since you're supposed to feel somewhat helpless. Maybe increasing the difficulty would allay some of your gameplay concerns.

It's not so much the difficulty that I'm not thrilled about.  It's the lack of variety (and the general lack of it).  Control, by contrast, IMHO had a great balance.

[skillzdadirecta]

As someone who played and loved Alan Wake and its expansions and most of Remedy's games, including Quantum Break, Alan Wake 2 just isn't clicking for me either and I'm feeling a lot of the same things @best3444 is feeling about the game. I played a decent amount when I got it, put it down to focus more on Lies of P and picked it up last night and immediately remembered why I put it down. I DO plan on finishing it and maybe these impressions will change but this game feels... I dunno... overrated as fuck? There''s just a lot of clunkiness to the gameplay, from how you access your map, to the whole mind room thing and how the clues and stuff work... I don't know. Maybe I'm missing something but this game as of right now just doesn't feel like it deserves the accolades its been getting. I'm gonna reserve judgment on the story because I haven't beaten it yet to see where its going but I gotta be honest... its pretty meh right now. Game looks good and the combat feels good... when there IS combat. We'll see... I hope to have this game finished soon. Maybe my opinion will change. 

[best3444]

1 hour ago, skillzdadirecta said:

As someone who played and loved Alan Wake and its expansions and most of Remedy's games, including Quantum Break, Alan Wake 2 just isn't clicking for me either and I'm feeling a lot of the same things @best3444 is feeling about the game. I played a decent amount when I got it, put it down to focus more on Lies of P and picked it up last night and immediately remembered why I put it down. I DO plan on finishing it and maybe these impressions will change but this game feels... I dunno... overrated as fuck? There''s just a lot of clunkiness to the gameplay, from how you access your map, to the whole mind room thing and how the clues and stuff work... I don't know. Maybe I'm missing something but this game as of right now just doesn't feel like it deserves the accolades its been getting. I'm gonna reserve judgment on the story because I haven't beaten it yet to see where its going but I gotta be honest... its pretty meh right now. Game looks good and the combat feels good... when there IS combat. We'll see... I hope to have this game finished soon. Maybe my opinion will change. 

 

Finally someone agrees with me. 

 

It's completely overrated and it got great praise because fanboys were so excited there was actually a sequel. It was shocking it was made. 

[stepee]

Or people had different opinions :Oooooooooo

[skillzdadirecta]

1 minute ago, stepee said:

Or people had different opinions :Oooooooooo

[stepee]

I guess lol, I’m just not a big conspiracy guy in general 

[AbsolutSurgen]

17 minutes ago, best3444 said:

 

Finally someone agrees with me. 

 

It's completely overrated and it got great praise because fanboys were so excited there was actually a sequel. It was shocking it was made. 

I agree with your opinion of the game, given your tastes.

I also 100% see what the "Alan Wake II is GOTY crowd" sees.

[skillzdadirecta]

7 minutes ago, stepee said:

I guess lol, I’m just not a big conspiracy guy in general 

That's not a conspiracy though... just an observation of human nature. The fact that we got a sequel to a beloved game that people DIDN'T think we were going to get a sequel to may have colored some folks opinions whether they realized it or not. This game has some GLARING issues that folks are just glossing over, even in this thread. I mean is this game REALLY better than Balder's Gate 3, or Zelda, or any of the other REALLY good games that came out this year? THIS game?

[stepee]

Yeah definitely, I didn’t really like TOTK and BG3 isn’t my thing so I can see that for sure 

[stepee]

To be clear though, I think GOTY awards are people picking their favorite games of the year. I don’t think pretty much any outlet picks their GOTY based on what they think is objectively the best game released that year by any metric. I don’t think it is something even attempted. I could see someone who thinks GOTY are objective awards, if AW2 didn’t click for them, being more confused by its placement.

[best3444]

13 minutes ago, skillzdadirecta said:

That's not a conspiracy though... just an observation of human nature. The fact that we got a sequel to a beloved game that people DIDN'T think we were going to get a sequel to may have colored some folks opinions whether they realized it or not. This game has some GLARING issues that folks are just glossing over, even in this thread. I mean is this game REALLY better than Balder's Gate 3, or Zelda, or any of the other REALLY good games that came out this year? THIS game?

 

Thanks 😊 

[Keyser_Soze]

33 minutes ago, skillzdadirecta said:

 I mean is this game REALLY better than Balder's Gate 3, or Zelda, or any of the other REALLY good games that came out this year? THIS game?

 

This game is probably better than Balder's Gate 3 but probably not better than Baldur's Gate 3.

[skillzdadirecta]

2 minutes ago, Keyser_Soze said:

 

This game is probably better than Balder's Gate 3 but probably not better than Baldur's Gate 3.

Good point 

[skillzdadirecta]

29 minutes ago, stepee said:

I could see someone who thinks GOTY are objective awards, if AW2 didn’t click for them, being more confused by its placement.

It's all subjective... that's the point that @best3444 and I are making. The fact that we even GOT an Alan Wake 2 when people legit thought it wasn't going to happen may have colored some folks SUBJECTIVE opinions. Personally, I don't give a shit about ANY of these awards or reviews for that matter and this is a prime example why. of the games Ive played and finished from 2023, Spiderman 2 is my current number 1 with Jedi Survivor being #2 and Remanant 2 and Lies of P bringing up 3 and 4 interchangeably. I'm still playing through AW2 and my opinion can change for sure, but GOTY? In a year like 2023? That's a reach based on what I've played so far.

[stepee]

Just now, skillzdadirecta said:

It's all subjective... that's the point that @best3444 and I are making. The fact that we even GOT an Alan Wake 2 when people legit thought it wasn't going to happen may have colored some folks SUBJECTIVE opinions. Personally, I don't give a shit about ANY of these awards or reviews for that matter and this is a prime example why. of the games Ive played and finished from 2023, Spiderman 2 is my current number 1 with Jedi Survivor being #2 and Remanant 2 and Lies of P bringing up 3 and 4 interchangeably. I'm still playing through AW2 and my opinion can change for sure, but GOTY? In a year like 2023? That's a reach based on what I've played so far.

 

That we got it at all might have made it more exciting, but also that we wanted it so badly just shows how more of this sort of thing is something we would enjoy, and then it exceeded expectations and blew away the first one, so yeah it all added up to the most enjoyable experience for a lot of people apparently! It’s not for for everyone, Im surprised it wasn’t more divisive actually.

 

It just sounded like you were saying people only voted it because they didn’t think it would happen not that part of that affected how much they enjoyed it. But that makes more sense. Sucks you didn’t get to enjoy it as much as others but it happens, just like me waiting around for a 3D Zelda game I like again.

[skillzdadirecta]

1 minute ago, stepee said:

Sucks you didn’t get to enjoy it as much as others

I'm still playing it and as I've said, my opinion may change, I'm just commenting based on what I've played SO FAR. I remember not enjoying Control all that much when I first started it and it ended up being my GOTY that year, largely because the gameplay evolved over the course of the game with the powers you unlocked. I don't know if that's going to happen here, but I'm open to it. If the game stays where it's at? Then my opinion will probably stay unchanged.

[Mr.Vic20]

Just now, skillzdadirecta said:

I'm still playing it and as I've said, my opinion may change, I'm just commenting based on what I've played SO FAR. I remember not enjoying Control all that much when I first started it and it ended up being my GOTY that year, largely because the gameplay evolved over the course of the game with the powers you unlocked. I don't know if that's going to happen here, but I'm open to it. If the game stays where it's at? Then my opinion will probably stay unchanged.

But we can agree that the "homeland" style string board is dumb, right? Press X to THINK! 

[Greatoneshere]

3 hours ago, AbsolutSurgen said:

It's not so much the difficulty that I'm not thrilled about.  It's the lack of variety (and the general lack of it).  Control, by contrast, IMHO had a great balance.

 

I agree that Control had more/better balance, but it's also trying to be a different game than Alan Wake II. Alan Wake II is a sequel to Alan Wake, a game that didn't have a ton of combat, was pretty easy/straightforward when it did, etc. (as you know, having just played it with the flare nukes). Combat is not really what these games are about, so wanting/expecting more of it in a sequel strikes me as strange. This is a psychological survival horror game. This is a sequel to Alan Wake after all. Alan Wake II is everything Alan Wake was but more done better. 

 

I'm not sure why people are complaining about Alan Wake II winning some GOTY awards. BG3 has won by far the most according to SFLUFAN's thread, with Zelda coming in second and Alan Wake II a distant third in terms of winning #1. But if you can't see why it is winning awards at all or at least getting placed on lists, I can't help you. Maybe it's the great graphics, music, storytelling, intrigue, uniqueness, etc. A lot to like with Alan Wake II and all anyone can focus on is it's relative lack of combat when that was never Alan Wake to begin with. And a game winning awards for things besides combat/gameplay is nothing controversial. The game is an experience, and that's why it's winning awards. Whether you like that experience or not seems to be the determining factor.

[stepee]

5 minutes ago, Mr.Vic20 said:

But we can agree that the "homeland" style string board is dumb, right? Press X to THINK! 

 

That is definitely its biggest flaw! 

[stepee]

1 minute ago, Greatoneshere said:

 

I agree that Control had more/better balance, but it's also trying to be a different game than Alan Wake II. Alan Wake II is a sequel to Alan Wake, a game that didn't have a ton of combat, was pretty easy/straightforward when it did, etc. Combat is not really what these games are about, so wanting/expecting more of it in a sequel strikes me as strange. This is a sequel to Alan Wake after all. Alan Wake II is everything Alan Wake was but more done better. 

 

I'm not sure why people are complaining about Alan Wake II winning some GOTY awards. BG3 has won by far the most according to SFLUFAN's thread, with Zelda coming in second and Alan Wake II a distant third in terms of winning #1. But if you can't see why it is winning awards or at least getting placed on lists, I can't help you. Maybe it's the great graphics, music, storytelling, intrigue, uniqueness, etc. A lot to like on Alan Wake II and all anyone can focus on is it's relative lack of combat when that was never Alan Wake to begin with. And a game winning awards for things besides combat is nothing controversial.

 

Life is Strange was my goty the year it came out and the combat in that was awful!

[Greatoneshere]

1 minute ago, stepee said:

 

Life is Strange was my goty the year it came out and the combat in that was awful!

 

Exactly. Life is Strange is a great game (though I don't know I'd have put it as my number one for that year) but I go in knowing that game is clearly not about combat, but other things that make the game great. Alan Wake is the same in that way.

 

I mean Disco Elysium doesn't even really have combat at all yet it's probably one of my favorite games maybe ever.

[ShreddieMercury]

AW2's reception might be skewed slightly by the fact that it's an unlikely sequel that lots of people thought we'd never get.  But that doesn't mean it's not a bracing, original, and risky game that came along at a time when most video games don't aspire to be much more than interchangeable digital slop.

[stepee]

I wouldn’t expect your opinion to change much though if you are already say at chapter 4 or so, by that point I think it’s either clicked or it’s not going to. But at the very least if you are a Control fan you’ll be caught up for the parts of Control 2 that will be bound to reference this!

[Greatoneshere]

15 minutes ago, Mr.Vic20 said:

But we can agree that the "homeland" style string board is dumb, right? Press X to THINK! 

 

I don't think it's dumb at all, the game just didn't do enough with it. It was too easy/straightforward, if there was some puzzle solving to it then the idea feels really cool. Same with Alan Wake rewriting scenes in the Dark Place - really cool idea for level puzzles but they didn't do enough with it, which was a much cooler idea than Saga's mind place in terms of gameplay. I don't know what an Alan Wake III looks like but I could see them easily extrapolating on these ideas in a sequel, making them much better than how they were used here gameplay-wise.

[Greatoneshere]

6 minutes ago, ShreddieMercury said:

AW2's reception might be skewed slightly by the fact that it's an unlikely sequel that lots of people thought we'd never get.  But that doesn't mean it's not a bracing, original, and risky game that came along at a time when most video games don't aspire to be much more than interchangeable digital slop.

 

Exactly, this is the reason why it's getting so much recognition at a time where so many video games are same-y at the triple AAA level or straight trash.

[stepee]

2 minutes ago, Greatoneshere said:

 

I don't think it's dumb at all, the game just didn't do enough with it. It was too easy/straightforward, if there was some puzzle solving to it then the idea feels really cool. Same with Alan Wake rewriting scenes in the Dark Place - really cool idea for level puzzles but they didn't do enough with it, which was a much cooler idea than Saga's mind place in terms of gameplay. I don't know what an Alan Wake III looks like but I could see them easily extrapolating on these ideas in a sequel, making them much better than how they were used here.

 

Or maybe even in the dlc!

[Mr.Vic20]

3 minutes ago, Greatoneshere said:

 

I don't think it's dumb at all, the game just didn't do enough with it. It was too easy/straightforward, if there was some puzzle solving to it then the idea feels really cool. Same with Alan Wake rewriting scenes in the Dark Place - really cool idea for level puzzles but they didn't do enough with it, which was a much cooler idea than Saga's mind place in terms of gameplay. I don't know what an Alan Wake III looks like but I could see them easily extrapolating on these ideas in a sequel, making them much better than how they were used here.

[Greatoneshere]

1 minute ago, stepee said:

 

Or maybe even in the dlc!

 

I hadn't considered that, that'd be dope.

[Mr.Vic20]

I will quote my wife, regarding the string board specifically, after watching the game for about 2 hours. "They don't think much of our ability to grasp what's going on, do they?" 

[Greatoneshere]

1 minute ago, Mr.Vic20 said:

I will quote my wife, regarding the string board specifically, after watching the game for about 2 hours. "They don't think much of our ability to grasp what's going on, do they?" 

 

I mean . . . have you met a casual gamer? Remedy definitely shouldn't trust the average gamer's ability to grasp shit. However, that doesn't excuse its straightforward and cumbersome nature, but that doesn't mean the idea isn't cool if done better. Heavy Rain did something similar which at the time was cool too, it makes you feel like a detective even if it's unrealistic.

[best3444]

Out of everything the crime board wasn't an issue to me in the slightest. I actually liked it because it really kept things organized. 

[ShreddieMercury]

The crime board was less insulting to my intelligence than the entirety of Jedi Survivor.

[best3444]

6 minutes ago, ShreddieMercury said:

The crime board was less insulting to my intelligence than the entirety of Jedi Survivor.

 

 

 

What's wrong with Jedi Survivor?

[Mr.Vic20]

23 minutes ago, best3444 said:

 

 

 

What's wrong with Jedi Survivor?

Generic plot is generic, no plot twists detected. 

[skillzdadirecta]

49 minutes ago, best3444 said:

 

 

 

What's wrong with Jedi Survivor?

Nothing... it didn't try hard enough to be "risky and "avante garde".