“Alan Wake 2: The Thrilling Return of a Cult Classic”

It has been over a year since I delved into the Remedy universe, and I’m thrilled to report that there’s no end in sight.

Since the launch of Alan Wake 2 in October 2023, I’ve experienced almost every title in Remedy’s lineup, often more than once (I’m looking at you, Control and Max Payne 2). These exceptional games have left little room for anything else this year.

However, that doesn’t mean I haven’t enjoyed any new releases in 2024. Tiny Kitty, Enormous City won my heart, Thank Goodness You’re Here had me laughing, and Star Wars Outlaws provided a much-needed blast of nostalgia. I also dedicated over 120 hours to Baldur’s Gate 3 within a span of 20 days.

“The absurdity is through the roof, from Alan communicating as a mounted bass ornament to a motorcycle transforming into a werewolf (yes, truly)”

Unfortunately, Remedy simply had to keep rolling out content for Alan Wake 2, which materialized in the form of two expansions: Night Springs and The Lake House.

Night Springs launched on June 8, featuring three episodes centered around characters from Remedy’s interconnected universe. Night Springs itself pays tribute to The Twilight Zone and appears as a fictional TV show within 2010’s Alan Wake.

This was later elaborated in 2012 with Alan Wake’s American Nightmare, which is framed as an episode of Night Springs written by Alan to escape The Dark Place – an alternate nightmare realm he has been trapped in for 13 years.

The Night Springs expansion follows a similar concept, with Alan utilizing characters from Remedy games as a means to escape.

One episode is based on the overarching story of 2019’s Control, focusing on its protagonist Jesse Faden – the director of a secret government organization known as the Federal Bureau of Control. In Night Springs, she is simply known as The Sibling and is searching for her brother at a theme park featured in Alan Wake 2.

The other is a mind-bending adventure through parallel universes, where players assume the role of the actual actor Shawn Ashmore. He plays Sheriff Tim Breaker in Alan Wake 2 as well as protagonist Jack Joyce in 2016’s Quantum Break. However, in this episode, he portrays an unnamed hero in a game called Time Breaker, developed by Poison Tablet Entertainment (possibly due to Microsoft’s continued ownership of the Quantum Break IP).

What instantly captivated me was the first episode of Night Springs, Number One Fan.

This episode centers on Rose Marigold, a waitress from the game’s fictitious diner. In Alan Wake, she was an endearing yet clichéd fangirl. Fortunately, her character was developed further in Alan Wake 2, and even more so in Number One Fan.

Rose is tasked with rescuing her beloved author Alan from the grasp of his envious twin brother, Scratch (in the original games, Scratch is a manifestation of a supernatural entity called the Dark Presence, which takes on Alan’s appearance).

Number One Fan revolves around Rose’s loyalty to Alan, but not in a negative way. The episode does not mock her dedication to the author she adores; it celebrates it.

Since my infatuation with Alan Wake, I’ve been referred to as “the Alan Wake writer” – it doesn’t take long to see why if you follow me on social media. However, as a neurodivergent individual who hyperfixates on things, I’ve often faced teasing for loving a game or television show “too much.”

Nonetheless, the Remedy community has embraced me warmly, and I’m often called Rose by my close friends online… although that was quite a stretch for me after I followed in her footsteps and managed to acquire a life-size cutout of Alan.

Having Rose as the focal point and the true hero of Number One Fan made me feel acknowledged. It’s a gesture of gratitude toward Alan Wake fans, which game director Kyle Rowley emphasized when I spoke with Remedy’s development team about the expansion earlier this year.

After investing over 100 hours into replaying Alan Wake 2, I genuinely wanted to see Remedy’s quirky humor take center stage – and it does so abundantly here. The absurdity is off the charts, from Alan conversing with Rose as a mounted bass ornament and a deer to a motorcycle morphing into a werewolf (yes, indeed).

Moreover, Jessica Preddy’s fabulous performance as Rose, along with the unbeatable duo of Matthew Porretta and Ilkka Villi (as both Alan and Scratch), solidified the first expansion as my game of the year right from the start.

Then came The Lake House.

Released on October 22, the game’s second DLC cranked the survival horror up to 11, but in a distinctly Remedy fashion.

Set as a Control crossover event, you play as Kiran Estevez – an agent from the Federal Bureau of Control. She’s been assigned to investigate the situation unfolding in the game’s fictional town of Radiant Falls. Estevez is introduced mid-way through Alan Wake 2, where she references an incident that takes place during this expansion.

This incident occurs at The Lake House: a research facility established to study paranormal phenomena at Cauldron Lake, located near Radiant Falls. Cauldron Lake happens to be a portal to The Dark Place.

Upon entering an abandoned Lake House, Estevez discovers that horrific supernatural entities have been unleashed by an unlikely source: abstract art. It’s up to her to uncover the reason behind this, and more importantly, to stop them.

Playing as Estevez reminded me of how I connected with Jesse in Control.