Alan Wake II

In the AAA video game space where teams of hundreds (if not thousands) of developers have their hands on a project, it’s sometimes hard to get a cohesive vision through the pipeline and onto storefronts. Alan Wake II, Remedy’s long-awaited horror follow-up, is a fine example of a team capturing a coherent theme and executing it immaculately. The fact that the sequel manages to feel that tightly wound around its own vision is incredible, given that it is full of intricate horror, meta-commentary on the terrifying act of creating anything, and jumps between perspectives and blends in live-action sequences in meaningful ways. Alan Wake II’s bold ideas shouldn’t work, but do because it’s a culmination of everything Remedy has achieved up to this point. There’s a reason it ranked at the top of Kotaku’s Game of the Year list for 2023.

A Good Match For: Fans of roller-coaster narratives and spooky shit

Not A Good Match For: Those who don’t like to be scared