Esspot

Alan Wake is a game with a great idea and story, but with terrible gameplay and controls (PS5). The game’s story is very interesting and is the only real reason to play it. The only downside is that it has an open ending. The gameplay is a standard shooter with an extra step — shining light using a flashlight. It’s not a bad idea, but it very quickly becomes repetitive and annoying. The game has three weapons — a pistol, a rifle, a shotgun, something like a grenade launcher, a “light grenade,” and a “light emitter,” which mostly don’t work- that’s it. No upgrades or variations. The enemies consist of three types, plus, possessed objects. I have never played a game with such repetitive gameplay. The controls are awful (PS5): dodging (mostly doesn’t work) and running (which lasts maybe 15 seconds) is mapped to the same L1 button. The worst part is that gameplay makes up 80% of the game. The environment looks the same everywhere, and the graphics are tolerable at best. Very, very weak — 4/10.

[SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers.]