15 Years Ago, Alan Wake Transformed Storytelling in Video…

Spoilers ahead for Alan Wake, Control, and Alan Wake 2.

On May 14, 2010, Alan Wake was officially introduced to gamers by developer Remedy Entertainment. Up until then, the Finnish studio was known for Death Rally and the Max Payne franchise, but Alan Wake marked the beginning of a mind-bending and unique narrative universe that is still unfolding.

Protagonist Alan is a troubled writer who finds himself caught up in a bizarre mystery. While on a writer's retreat in Bright Falls, Washington, Alan's wife Alice is dragged into the nearby water, Cauldron Lake. Plagued by hallucinations and the unknown whereabouts of his wife, Alan works to unravel the mystery of the lake, revealing that an entity known as the Dark Presence is trapped in the waters and is bringing Alan's writings to life. The Dark Presence is using the writings to try and escape, while using Alice as a way to lure Alan into the depths in order to free itself. Like a blend of The X Files and Twin Peaks, Alan Wake fully embraces the bizarre, and it opened the door to a new type of storytelling in gaming.

Control 2's Genre Shift May Be a Risk Worth Taking After Alan Wake 2

Control 2 is reportedly shifting genres a little from the first entry, and after Alan Wake 2's financial reports, that might be a risk worth taking.

Posts

By Cameron Swan

Alan Wake Has Spawned an Entire Universe Centered Around Exploring the Unknown

The Remedy Connected Universe

Alan Wake was merely the beginning of a much larger puzzle. In 2018, Remedy shook up the industry once more with the arrival of Control. Throughout the game, Alan Wake fans were quick to notice references to Wake and the events at Cauldron Lake sprinkled throughout the story. Eventually, Remedy launched AWE, Control's second DLC, which brought Alan back into the spotlight, as Jesse Faden learned about Cauldron Lake and its strange ability to use artists' works to alter reality.

This connection continued, as Alan Wake 2 returned the favor to Control, making the Federal Bureau of Control a central part of its story while also featuring Jesse in the Night Springs DLC. Between Alan Wake, Control, and Alan Wake 2, the stage has been set for Remedy to dive as deep as possible in this wacky and awe-inspiring universe. With each new Remedy game, the questions introduced by Alan Wake have continued to unravel, and as soon as one thinks the mystery is solved, another one pops up in its place.

Alan Wake fully embraces the bizarre, and it opened the door to a new type of storytelling in gaming.

Remedy's next game is FBC: Firebreak, a multiplayer title that takes place after the events of Control, further expanding the connected universe.

Alan Wake Helped Show That Video Games Are the New Frontier of Storytelling

Video games have come a long way since the days of Pong. Once the new millennium arrived, developers started to be more experimental with games, seeing them as a fresh avenue to bring compelling stories to life instead of focusing solely on gameplay. People like Hideo Kojima and developers like Rockstar realized the potential of turning games into cinematic experiences. Remedy's Sam Lake and his fellow developers at the company saw this storytelling opportunity, too.

Alan Wake was a unique demonstration of how not all storytelling in games has to get straight to the point. Remedy leaned heavily into the fun of solving mysteries and forcing its audience into accepting that not all the answers are clear. This is a tradition that Remedy has continued since Alan Wake, filling its stories with baffling plot threads that eventually connect to larger themes and story arcs, building its wild lore one step at a time.

FBC: Firebreak is set to launch on June 17, 2025.

Although Alan Wake wasn't the first game to introduce deep storytelling, it definitely demonstrated just how out-of-this-world developers can go when willing to take risks. Alan Wake planted the seed for a connecting story that is still growing, and as the Remedy universe evolves further, it will be thrilling to see how the first chapter's legacy continues to inspire.

Rating block community and brand ratings Image