Summary
Video game collectibles are a tricky thing to get right. More often than not, they can be a chore to collect, with players collecting items that serve no purpose beyond giving them something to do and filling a spot on an achievement or Trophy list. However, when a game does collectibles right, they can enhance an experience.Marvel’s Spider-Man’s charming backpacks providing lore on his early superhero career,God of War Ragnarok’s poems that reference PlayStation exclusives, andThe Last of Us’ many impactful notesare all examples of the mechanic being used well. Now,Alan Wake 2has raised the bar for video game collectibles.
Collectibles inAlan Wake 2come in several forms, but all of them offer some kind of gameplay or lore reward. Players can collect Alex Casey lunch boxes with mysterious notes from someone who is trying to help Saga along on her journey, find Words of Power to boost Alan’s strength, collect manuscript pages that add to the story, and so on. No collectible feels pointless, nor are they a chore to find. Players will spot most of them naturally as long as they explore, and doing so will enhance the experience because the collectibles feel like a key part of the game as opposed to something that is just tacked on to add content.
What Makes Alan Wake 2’s Collectibles So Great
Alan Wake 2’s Collectibles Perfectly Blend Lore and Gameplay Benefits
Each ofAlan Wake 2’s collectibles is fun to go for or offers some kind of meaningful story payoff, which is impressive considering just how many there are.Alan Wake 2features:
While seeing this many collectible types may make it seem like Remedy has gone overboard, the studio uses its experience fromControlto ensure that all of its collectibles have some kind of impact on the player and leave them feeling rewarded for the hunt. The live action Writer’s Journey videos do a terrific job of showing Alan’s descent into madness, while the commercials featuring the Koskelas are hilariously awkward but also slightly unsettling. The Setter for Mayor campaign ads tease the candidate’s identity, andWords of Powerreward players with powerful upgrades for Alan if they look around, with Lunch Boxes doing the same for Saga. Charms are not only cute, but provide game-changing buffs for Saga like staggering enemies more easily or bringing her back from the dead.
Though the notes left for Saga in the lunchboxes add some mystery and keep players thinking aboutRemedy’s world, the other collectibles really allow the game’s storytelling to shine. Manuscript Pages appear as the story progresses, allowing players to listen as Alan writes the events they just witnessed or provides context for characters Saga recently encountered. Nursery Rhymes go from fun and creepy puzzles to a neatControltie-in, while Echoes offer narration from Alex Casey to keep fans guessing about where the narrative will go next. Cult Stashes not only include threats from the cult that keep players on edge and provide context about the group, but each also offers a fun puzzle before it can be unlocked - resulting in the perfect blend between fun gameplay and storytelling.
Instead of a lackluster collectible tracker, Remedy makes it feel natural to keep an eye on what items have been found via case files inSaga’s mind place. Here, players can see which areas still have collectibles to be found without hurting their immersion and taking them out of the game, with special dialogue triggering after completing each set.
What Other Games Should Learn From Alan Wake 2’s Collectibles
Going forward, other video games should take one big lesson fromAlan Wake 2: variety. Whether players are watching a live action video, listening to a radio presenter lose track of time, readingAlan’s confused writing, or gathering charms to make their character stronger, every single collectible type has something that sets it apart from the other categories. While asking for as much variety asAlan Wake 2had for every video game’s collectibles would be a bit much, having multiple types of things to collect would benefit most games. More titles have started to introduce intriguing collectibles that are worth searching for, but few have handled the mechanic as well asAlan Wake 2, and it is one of many parts of the game that deserves praise.
Alan Wake 2
WHERE TO PLAY
A string of ritualistic murders threatens Bright Falls, a small-town community surrounded by Pacific Northwest wilderness. Saga Anderson, an accomplished FBI agent with a reputation for solving impossible cases arrives to investigate the murders. Anderson’s case spirals into a nightmare when she discovers pages of a horror story that starts to come true around her.Alan Wake, a lost writer trapped in a nightmare beyond our world, writes a dark story in an attempt to shape the reality around him and escape his prison. With a dark horror hunting him, Wake is trying to retain his sanity and beat the devil at his own game.Anderson and Wake are two heroes on two desperate journeys in two separate realities, connected at heart in ways neither of them can understand: reflecting each other, echoing each other, and affecting the worlds around them.Fueled by the horror story, supernatural darkness invades Bright Falls, corrupting the locals and threatening the loved ones of both Anderson and Wake. Light is their weapon—and their safe haven — against the darkness they face. Trapped in a sinister horror story where there are only victims and monsters, can they break out to be the heroes they need to be?
