Alan Wake Catch All

Great game so far. I usually don't buy into the whole shut the lights off, and close the curtain's aspect of survival horror games, but it seems like the only right time to play this game is when it's dark out. The only real issue I have with the game is that it lists your objective in the top left screen under your radar. It kinda detracts from the game a little. I searched to see if there is a way to turn it off to no avail. You should just be able to pause it to see your objective. Other than that little nitpicking I can't wait till it gets dark out tonight so I can play this game some more.

I sort of expected the radar to take me away from the game world, but it turns out that like with Fable II, having a guide to my next objective makes me feel I can afford to wander off the beaten path without fear of becoming actually lost.

The dodging thing - you gotta time it right, doesn't help to spam the shoulder.

I played this in pretty much a one-off sitdown, except for a few hours to relinquish tv control to the wife, so I became somewhat desensitized to the story towards the ends.

My thoughts. If you like Half-Life 2, you'll like this game. I enjoyed this game. Good story, enjoyed the episodes and their style. There were times when combat dragged, but I felt the episode conclusions would redeem it. The combat really dragged when I had been playing too long and was losing interest in the story, but that could have been helped if I hadn't gone for the marathon run and taken an overnight break. I liked the injected humor in the story, and felt it wasn't overdone and was well placed. It's nice when writers can make fun of themselves and not derail the story.

Flares, I love flares.

Flares are awesome. They're like precision grenades that are effective even before they land.

of course, as such I'm always afraid to use them when I have them.

Stevenmack, I know you share my like for Alone in the Dark. Am I correct that this is sort of like that?

ccesarano wrote:

Flares are awesome. They're like precision grenades that are effective even before they land.

of course, as such I'm always afraid to use them when I have them.

I have a bad habit in videos games of stockpiling the good stuff for "when I really need it" which of course turns out to be never. I've been forcing myself to actually use the stuff I'm picking up in this since it wipes your inventory at the beginning of each chapter anyways.

ccesarano wrote:

of course, as such I'm always afraid to use them when I have them.

If you're playing on normal or hard I wouldn't worry too much about hoarding stuff. You get more than enough at regular intervals (and it pulls the "woops I lost all my stuff" card quite often as well). Nightmare seems to be a lot tougher though, particularily in the ammo department.

ClockworkHouse wrote:

Stevenmack, I know you share my like for Alone in the Dark. Am I correct that this is sort of like that?

Yeah it feels quite similar (although a LOT more polished and with the emphasis much more on the combat side of things). It never opens up the way AitD does later on but I think that's to it's advantage.

Tips for the optimal experience of Alan Wake. Play on HARD mode. Don't save your stash, use it immediately because there is always more ammo just around the corner and you lose everything the end of each episode. Learn to dodge. If you're playing in Nightmare mode learn to cut your losses and run towards the light!

I got the game on release day and I got to play for an hour or so last night. The visual design and gameplay mechanics have won me over. I am looking forward to getting back into it tonight. Like some, I don't go for the creepy/horror games, but this one has me hooked. Even though the atmosphere creeps me out, the action parts of the game give you confidence to push through. It can be exhilarating.

I do have some criticisms though. While the art, sound, and game design are solid and feel very polished, the graphical quality is a bit of a let down. I have seen screen tearing, some jumpy animations, jaggies, pop-in, and even what looked like macroblocking in one of the cutscenes. I think the 360 is starting to show it's limitations. The designers were definitely ambitious and swung for the fences with the art design, lighting, draw distance, etc., but that forced them to dial down some settings. Still a pretty game to look at, though.

heavyfeul wrote:

I do have some criticisms though. While the art, sound, and game design are solid and feel very polished, the graphical quality is a bit of a let down. I have seen screen tearing, some jumpy animations, jaggies, pop-in, and even what looked like macroblocking in one of the cutscenes. I think the 360 is starting to show it's limitations. The designers were definitely ambitious and swung for the fences with the art design, lighting, draw distance, etc., but that forced them to dial down some settings. Still a pretty game to look at, though.

A lot of these graphical problems were pretty rare during my experience. I think a lot of it had to do with my decision to install it on my 360 hard drive. I suspect these problems are much worse if you just run it off the disc--a shame.

demonicmurry wrote:

Tips for the optimal experience of Alan Wake. Play on HARD mode. Don't save your stash, use it immediately because there is always more ammo just around the corner and you lose everything the end of each episode. Learn to dodge. If you're playing in Nightmare mode learn to cut your losses and run towards the light!

They gave this tip on one of the podcasts that talked about the first episode before release. It might have been Weekend Confirmed. I'm glad, because otherwise I'd have never used the flare gun.

demonicmurry wrote:
heavyfeul wrote:

I do have some criticisms though. While the art, sound, and game design are solid and feel very polished, the graphical quality is a bit of a let down. I have seen screen tearing, some jumpy animations, jaggies, pop-in, and even what looked like macroblocking in one of the cutscenes. I think the 360 is starting to show it's limitations. The designers were definitely ambitious and swung for the fences with the art design, lighting, draw distance, etc., but that forced them to dial down some settings. Still a pretty game to look at, though.

A lot of these graphical problems were pretty rare during my experience. I think a lot of it had to do with my decision to install it on my 360 hard drive. I suspect these problems are much worse if you just run it off the disc--a shame.

I haven't really noticed those problem much at all, and I'm playing from the disc. Maybe I'm just getting desensitized to it.

I really do not like that dodge is on the LB. That is an awkward hand position to use dodge and left stick at the same time. I wish dodge had been the B or Y button.

I also didn't get any of the graphical glitches mentioned (pop-in, tearing, etc.) and I am playing off the disc.

ccesarano wrote:

I also didn't get any of the graphical glitches mentioned (pop-in, tearing, etc.) and I am playing off the disc.

Yeah I didn't notice too many problems off the disc either. Certainly no tearing.

If anyone wants a quick spoiler free guide to the number of collectables per chapter, I've added them below. You should be able to track manuscripts via the main menu so it's really just down to the Coffee, Can pyramids and Signs (the latter being quite annoying as it's very easy to miss some of them).

Spoiler:

1-A ----> Coffee [3] Cans [1]
1-B ----> Coffee [3]
1-C ----> Coffee [8] Cans [1] Signs[1]

2-A ----> Coffee [3] Signs[1
2-B ----> Coffee [14] Cans [2] Signs[4]

3-A ----> Coffee [9] Cans [1]
3-B ----> Coffee [11] Cans [1] Signs[3]

4-A ----> Coffee [6] Cans [1] Signs[4]
4-B ----> Coffee [12] Cans [1] Signs[1]
4-C ----> nuthin'

5-A ----> Coffee [10] Cans [1] Signs[3]
5-B ----> Coffee [10] Cans [1] Signs[4]

6-A ----> Coffee [10] Cans [2] Signs[4]
6-B ----> Coffee [1]

Mr E.B. Slugworth wrote:
demonicmurry wrote:
heavyfeul wrote:

I do have some criticisms though. While the art, sound, and game design are solid and feel very polished, the graphical quality is a bit of a let down. I have seen screen tearing, some jumpy animations, jaggies, pop-in, and even what looked like macroblocking in one of the cutscenes. I think the 360 is starting to show it's limitations. The designers were definitely ambitious and swung for the fences with the art design, lighting, draw distance, etc., but that forced them to dial down some settings. Still a pretty game to look at, though.

A lot of these graphical problems were pretty rare during my experience. I think a lot of it had to do with my decision to install it on my 360 hard drive. I suspect these problems are much worse if you just run it off the disc--a shame.

I haven't really noticed those problem much at all, and I'm playing from the disc. Maybe I'm just getting desensitized to it.

I play pretty close to the screen (~4 feet from a 35 inch 1080i CRT), so maybe that has something to do with it. Plus, I am an unashamed graphics whore, so I pay close attention to the little details. For the record, though, the game looks fantastic. I don't want to turn anyone off of the game. It has great style, artistry, and action. Still, I would love to see this game on the PC with the settings cranked up. I hope they give it a full polish when they port it over.

It's 49.99 on Amazon right now. Just fyi, sorry if old.

CptGlanton wrote:

It's 49.99 on Amazon right now. Just fyi, sorry if old.

Those bastards! I just paid $60 a few days ago. I would much rather have had $10 off then a $10 credit for a future game that expires in a month!

I'm a little pissed. This may be the last time I preorder from Amazon if they are going to pull this crap.

heavyfeul wrote:
CptGlanton wrote:

It's 49.99 on Amazon right now. Just fyi, sorry if old.

Those bastards! I just paid $60 a few days ago. I would much rather have had $10 off then a $10 credit for a future game that expires in a month!

I'm a little pissed. This may be the last time I preorder from Amazon if they are going to pull this crap.

:old:

They'll likely refund you the difference per their lowest price guarantee. You might drop them an email about it.

Any reason to pick it up new or will used do just as well?

RichyRambo wrote:

Any reason to pick it up new or will used do just as well?

It's essentially $40 from Amazon (assuming you plan on buying another game anyway) and, apparently, you get a free dlc episode. Outside of that, not really.

ClockworkHouse wrote:
heavyfeul wrote:
CptGlanton wrote:

It's 49.99 on Amazon right now. Just fyi, sorry if old.

Those bastards! I just paid $60 a few days ago. I would much rather have had $10 off then a $10 credit for a future game that expires in a month!

I'm a little pissed. This may be the last time I preorder from Amazon if they are going to pull this crap.

:old:

They'll likely refund you the difference per their lowest price guarantee. You might drop them an email about it.

I sent them an email, but the pre-order price guarantee reads as follows:

Amazon.com wrote:

Pre-order Price Guarantee! Order now and if the Amazon.com price decreases between your order time and the end of the day of the release date, you'll receive the lowest price.

Since the price drop happened "coincidentally" the day after the release day, the pre-order guarantee does not apply. A real slimy move on their part. Hopefully they will give me ten bucks back in some form or another.

What really chaps my ass is that if you buy it today, you get $10 off plus $10 off your next game purchase. Why would they blatantly give the finger to people who pre-order?

heavyfeul wrote:
CptGlanton wrote:

It's 49.99 on Amazon right now. Just fyi, sorry if old.

Those bastards! I just paid $60 a few days ago. I would much rather have had $10 off then a $10 credit for a future game that expires in a month!

I'm a little pissed. This may be the last time I preorder from Amazon if they are going to pull this crap.

:old:

skimmer

edit: Actually, the discussion took place in the "deals" thread so you absolved of the skimmer title. My bad.

iaintgotnopants wrote:
heavyfeul wrote:

Since the price drop happened "coincidentally" the day after the release day, the pre-order guarantee does not apply.

The price was dropped yesterday.

Good. Whew! Now as long as they get me my $10 bucks back I won't have to hunt down Bezos and punch him in the face. Like the paper boy in Better Off Dead, "I want my 10 dollars!"

heavyfeul wrote:

Since the price drop happened "coincidentally" the day after the release day, the pre-order guarantee does not apply.

The price was dropped yesterday so it still falls under the guarantee.

edit: This was discussed yesterday in the "deals" thread starting here.

heavyfeul wrote:

I play pretty close to the screen (~4 feet from a 35 inch 1080i CRT), so maybe that has something to do with it. Plus, I am an unashamed graphics whore, so I pay close attention to the little details. For the record, though, the game looks fantastic. I don't want to turn anyone off of the game. It has great style, artistry, and action. Still, I would love to see this game on the PC with the settings cranked up. I hope they give it a full polish when they port it over.

I'm roughly the same distance from a 32inch 720p HDTV due to my room constraints, so I wouldn't imagine the display is it. I've seen a couple sections off the beaten path where the fog looks like a gap in the rockface texture, but other than that and the mouths I haven't seen anything that f*cks it up too bad.

The price difference of $30 is now much more significant, but the limited edition package is among the best I've seen. Great packaging, you get a lot of extras on the bonus disk, soundtrack CD, and most impressive a very high quality book. If you have the extra cash it might be worth it.

The limited edition strategy guide comes with a very swank hardcover art book, too.

beeporama wrote:

The price difference of $30 is now much more significant, but the limited edition package is among the best I've seen. Great packaging, you get a lot of extras on the bonus disk, soundtrack CD, and most impressive a very high quality book. If you have the extra cash it might be worth it.

The limited edition strategy guide comes with a very swank hardcover art book, too.

The book really made the package worth while in my opinion. Very solidly put together.

For anyone interested, it's a "non-fiction" account of the author trying to track down the source of his nightmares, which seem to be connected to Alan Wake and the events in Bright Falls. It also has samples of Alan Wake's earlier fiction and a bunch of local myths and legends for the Bright falls area. It's a really nice companion for the game.

It's probably best to read AFTER finishing the game itself though - there aren't really any huge spoilers as far as I can tell, but it references a lot of characters and events that happen during the game (in particular it REALLY fleshes out Agent Nightingale's motivations and state of mind...i smell related DLC at some point).

Incidentally...

Spoiler:

The book is written by the guy you briefly see in the opening dream sequence who gets an axe to the chops.

Oh, and beeporama - don't forget to install the commentary. Took me a while to figure out how you do it (you have to install it off of disk 2 then activate it from the options menu in the main game). The commentary 'points' seem quite sparse but it's interesting none the less.

for example..

Spoiler:

The reason it's called Bird Leg Cabin is that they originally planned to have the cabin move around on bird-like 'legs', like Baba Yaga's hut, rather than vanish into the lake.

heavyfeul wrote:
iaintgotnopants wrote:
heavyfeul wrote:

Since the price drop happened "coincidentally" the day after the release day, the pre-order guarantee does not apply.

The price was dropped yesterday.

Good. Whew! Now as long as they get me my $10 bucks back I won't have to hunt down Bezos and punch him in the face. Like the paper boy in Better Off Dead, "I want my 10 dollars!"
;)

Well...they refunded the money but acted like they did me a favor:

Amazon Customer Support wrote:

Hello,

Thanks for contacting us about the recent price change on "Alan Wake".

I've reviewed your order and see that the price change is significant from the time the item shipped.

Under the circumstances, I'll make a one-time exception for you and issue a refund for the price difference in the amount of $10.00. You should see the refund in the next 2-3 business days.

Is it me or does this canned response seem a bit snarky? Maybe it is just my mood.

I got some significant screen tearing at the beginning of Episode 4, but never noticed any huge glitches any other time.