Well, chalk up another "Completed" for me for 2016. True, it wasn't a big game, but going back to play more of, let alone finish, Alan Wake's American Nightmare was something I never thought I'd do.I got the copy I played by pre-ordering Quantum Break (Remedy's new game) and then playing it on a Xbox One in Xbox 360 compatibility mode. Not that any of that matters! I still had the game on Steam and could have played it again anytime I wanted to.
I still remember feeling revolted by playing AWAM right after finishing Alan Wake. I loved the first game's style and setting so much that I consider it to be one of my all time favorite gaming experiences...even if I didn't really understand the ending. (Or "endings" if you count the DLC stuff.)
Everything felt like it changed in American Nightmare - the graphic style, the weapons, the character model, the addition of the cheesy Rod Serling-esque narration. But for some reason, when I went back to it, none of that mattered. It felt oddly like I was just playing Alan Wake again, especially the light-and-gun shooting mechanic. I was just better armed now and you know, that's not a bad thing.
It was a short game (HLTB puts it around 2 hours, but I took probably twice that), but I'm really glad I finished it. It gave Alan a happy ending for a change and after all the "darkness" he's been through, he deserved it.
Now, time to dig into Quantum Break some more...
