Alan Wake for Xbox 360 Reviews by Gamers

Alan Wake was an unbelievable rental experience. In short, if you are looking to get sucked into a deep, rich, story driven experience with beautiful rendered environments and action packed gameplay, Alan Wake is a good option for you. For me, the strongest part of the game was the story. You are basically playing through a Steven King horror/thriller novel. Just be aware, it is very easy to get sucked so deeply into the game world to the point where you may end up having some odd dreams after a long gaming session before bed.

Gameplay follows close behind on it's strongest features. My heart would literally race every time enemies hit the screen. The slow motion dodges add teeth clenching near death experiences, which keep each action scene intense and satisfying. Like bullet time for Max Payne, the slow motion dodge is kind of the signature move for Alan Wake. Graphically, the game manages to cram an incredible amount of detail to all the environments. Some areas can feel dull, or almost copied from earlier parts of the game, but the key areas of the game are extremely fun to explore.

My only gripes about the game would be the lack replayability and somewhat of a questionable ending. Believe me, the story closes well. I was definitely satisfied. But the slight cliffhanger probably in the hopes of a sequel might be upsetting for some. The game probably took me 6 hours to complete. Thats including leisurely walking through areas to just enjoy its graphical detail, and searching for hidden items. Not a good game to buy, but an excellent choice as a gamefly rental.

In closing, rent this game now! You will absolutely get wrapped up in the story. Blasting a group of 4 'taken' (the name of the enemies in the game) in a beautiful slowmo action sequence and watching there bodies burn to ash as you barely survive the assault doesn't get old. Sure, you'll finish the game quickly. But you will do so well before you get bored of it.