Alan Wake Game Review

This is my first game review of one of my favourite games ever, this game inspired me to continue writing my novels and keep on pushing to finish them. I know what you are already thinking but no I will not be biased, well... I will be a little :) It is my favourite game and I have the right to be biased if I want to be.I will try not to put spoilers in this review but I warn you there will be. 

Alan Wake is about a writer plagued by writers block who  takes a holiday with his wife to a remote place in America. A dark presence takes his wife hostage and makes him write a novel to make it stronger, after escaping the dark presence Alan must try and find a way to rescue his wife while making sense of the entire situation; he is helped by his agent, a police officer and a man named "Thomas Zane"; a man who is still trapped in the lake and was the last victim of the dark presence.
The Story is well written and leaves you thinking "Wtf!", actually makes you think rather then plastering the story on your face like most games now a days. Game play involves weakening enemies down with a flash light and then shooting them, this gets very repetitive and I believe (as a writer) that the story kind of makes up for it. Behind the scenes the game was to be a open Sandbox style but failed and it is evident that this part was kept in during some of the driving scenes.
The Game gives a good presence and as the darkness envelopes you, the music the atmosphere brings the feeling of the player being alone and striving for the light becomes a goal. The Light engine is also brilliant, If you stare from the light to the darkness you cannot see anything other then the light but if you stare from the darkness into the light, you are blinded  by it, unless it isn't aimed at you then it looks like Real Light, I say real as in The Real world..
The Idea of a First Free DLC was brilliant. Remedy (the Original creators Of Max Payne and Now Alan Wake ) gave a DLC which made you wanted more story wise, almost making you want to pay for the second DLC to complete the story; rather then saying "here is the DLC, Buy it" like most companies. Alan Wake's DLC is not like most where the DLC is just part of the game they left out; in Alan Wake, the DLC is a extension of the game, bringing Alan wake 1 and the squeal "Alan Wake's American Nightmare" together. The use of music is pretty good, they have a band in the game which is key to the actual story with a song "Poet and his Muse". The band called "Poets of the fall" are a band Remedy have used before in Max Payne; they were the band that the end song 'Late Goodbye" was written from, the band was used in the in game band but also had a debut song called "War".

Alan Wake was also widely advertised in different Mediums, mediums such as a miniseries and the music video for Poet of the fall also includes the live action actor who gave the likeness for Alan and was also in the miniseries. This is great because it shows they are not just cooking out another game and want to actually make Alan wake into something more then a game.
I love this game, it has perfect story and a very good atmosphere. The problem with Alan Wake is it has almost zero replay ability unless you count finishing on the harder difficulty and collectables or achievement whoring. I hope you liked this review, Its my first one and hopefully the first of many. Thank you for your time and look out for my next review of Alan Wakes Sequal: "Alan Wake's American Nightmare". 

Winds of Change, Train of Thought, The Road & Horizon.

Here are Four little poem / stuff I wrote yesterday and today; I didn't have chance to upload these yesterday and have been rather bored today so I thought I should put them on now. ‘Winds of Change’ is a little thing that was inspired by war throughout the ages, from swords and shields to tanks and bullets, man always fights and reasons always appear, Religion, land and resource.
‘Train of thought’ is a little thing I wrote about trying to ask difficult questions and over thinking things. ‘The Road’ is about a lone journey which will end in finally finding someone to travel the road with while ‘Horizon’ is about the life after ‘The Road’, living together and moving onto the Horizon with your fellow loved one.

Winds of Change

Swords clash and shields buckle,

Man vs. Man, God on God, Christian to Saracen.

The word of God takes many forms

But I doubt the all mighty would approve.

We slaughter them and they slaughter us,

It will never change; The world will never change.

Man moved from sword to rifle, arrow to bullet;

Horse to tank and catapult to howitzer.

It will never change; The world will never change.

With fire and men the forces collide,

The dead litter and the living mourn

The only people to see wars end.

For God, land or resource mankind fails

It will never change; Mankind will never feel the Winds of Change.

By Lewis Stockton.

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Train Of Thought.

Thinking and Pondering,

All I ever do is think and worry;

The circumstances that will arise

If I pursue this Train of Thought.

What if’s and What Will are the same

To think the one will bring it to another.

It is only natural to worry, I always do

if I pursue this Train of Thought.

I can never leave this Journey,

The Journey is my Destiny:

I only ask we share this carriage:

On the Train of Thought.

By Lewis Stockton.

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The Road

The Path was long and far;

And my legs hurt and burnt.

Forever running; Walking this Road Alone.

Tree’s pass and the winds blow,

The world turned and carried on its eternal progression.

Weary eyed and tired; Walking this Road Alone.

I wish only to stop and rest my head,

A minute, a day, Even for a second.

Until journeys end, I will continue; Walking this Road Alone.

Finally the time has come,

Soon now I see my future, my Fate, my Destiny.

A Few more Feet; Walking this Road Alone.

I am here; At Journey’s End.

You are there to Embrace and love,

Now we walk together; Walking this Road Together.

By Lewis Stockton

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Horizon

Planets spin and Stars Fall,

The Universe still turns its eternal motion.

Sunsets and rises on a million worlds; Maybe more?

There is only one that I would share with you,

On our horizon does our future lie.

The Morning glow or the late gloom

Our star create.

My Feelings lasting the life of a billion Suns

or till Universe’s end come.

Be with me from Dawns glow to dusks gloom

And to live forever together in each others Arms

Moving forward into the Horizons beyond.

By Lewis Stockton.

Drifting

Here is a quick blog post & little poem thing I just did (I have written this on my laptop but it did not send as the internet is fucking up on my laptop so I am having to re-type it all out on my laptop. Urg… anyway) feeling awfully depressed and had been watching a old tv show called “Firefly” If you know what it is then you will understand this as it game me some inspiration; if you don’t then go now and google it, watch it and come back when you fall in love with it. Best gorram tv show / sci fi out there… ever

The hands of time grasp the wheel;
Ever turning on and on.
The world tumbles on, its people unaware
The man stares from the stars,
Not God nor Goddess, neither any of the Pantheon.
Just a man, descending through the clouds;
From star and heavenly body.
The Insect lands and his passengers depart,
Living their lives how they see fit;
Pushed by Law, Love and Family
But he is lost, without Law, Love or Family.
He is a man bound by Honour and Sacrifice;
The Battle was long and the war was hard,
leaving the man Godless and Alone; Forever a drifter of the stars,
Because no one leaves Serenity.

By Lewis Stockton

Take my Hand

Here is a short song / Poem I came up with;  Not really sure where  it came from, it just popped out my head :S. So here it is.

Take my hand, so we can fly away,

Take my hand so we can dine together,

Take my hand so we can Protect Each other,

Oh wont you take my hand; so we can love forever.

 

I would travel light years to hear you laugh,

I would move the world to see you smile,

I would journey the galaxy to smell your perfume,

Oh I would navigate a thousand seas to stop you crying.

 

Please take my hand so I can love you,

Would you take my hand so I can hold you,

Quickly take my hand so I can live with you,

Oh just take my hand so I can always be with you.

By Lewis Stockton

Into the Night

Here is a quick ballad thingy I wrote up; I'm not even sure if its a ballad or not, I'm not even sure what these are, I call them ballads because there is nothing similar to put them too.

I don't know what I was thinking,

As I drove into the Night.

Leaving her to squander her love,

As I drove into the Night.

I dare not open my heart for fear of pain,

As I drove into the Night.

They laugh and taunt at my sorrows,

As I drove into the Night.

I only wish for one thing,

As I drove into the Night.

To confess my heart and to love,

As I drove into the Night.

So I turn the wheel and return,

Now Driving into the Light.

By Lewis Stockton

Citadel Of Darkness

Here is a special treat thanks to Devon; while talking to her I was browsing though my top draw and looking at my old novels I had put to paper over the many years and began to look through my old novels I tried to write. I ended up finding these two which I am starting up again, although not as Novels, as Novella’s. The difference between Novels and Novella’s are that Novels are usually (and commonly known as) 50+ thousand words, Novella’s are between 10 and 40 thousand, So I know I would never get this one to go as far as 50K like “The Way The Stars Fall” So I am writing this to be a novella, aswell as “The Curse of a Paladin” Which I have mostly written and just need to beef out. ‘The Curse of a Paladin’ will turn out to be about 30K ish, maybe 25k while this one will be just about 20K ish. I am going to write these ones in the brain blocks during the writing of “Stars fall”

Anyway, Hope you enjoy this extract; this is the prologue to Citadel of Darkness, I may throw in “The Curse of A Paladin” Soon, if I get enough liking off this one.

The Image at the bottom of this page is of Revy from Black Lagoon and has nothing to do with the extract, I just wanted to put it here :D

Prologue

Slowly raising his hand from the desk in front of him, Jack ran his hand though his slightly greying hair. How did it all come to this; running though the streets of New York, London, Washington DC and the darkest corners of his imagination in a futile attempt to find his wife and daughter and pull himself from what most people had told him was total insanity?
Staring at the blank page in front of him, Hunter had no idea what to do now, everything had flowed just like a novel, a poem or a script that he had written before. They were closing all around him; beat after beat, his heart pumped in his ears. Jack had been running for hours with hardly any stops and his body couldn’t keep up with it, twice he had ended up throwing up but Jack was determined not to stop, he couldn’t stop. The story had to flow as it was on the page and if Jack did not finish it in real life, there and then; all would be lost; including his wife, daughter as well as Jack's own mind.
On the desk sat an old typewriter; it had been Jacks father’s before him and his father before his. He had been brought up around the old thing and it had started his career of being a novelist but now it was his worst enemy as well as his salvation.
“You must end the story Jack, finish the plot and save your family.” A voice spoke in Hunter's ear. The surge of adrenaline reached new highs as Jack quickly turned to face the source of the voice. There in the darkness; a slim man stepped into the room, slowly circling him.
Jack noticed that the figure did not step into the bright light that flowed from the small lampshade covered bulb that hung from the ceiling above. This was one of the things that had been chasing him for the past 5 years, haunted his dreams and chased him to the edge of insanity before finally pushing him over the edge and forcing his hand.
“No, you will only try to change it. I know what I must do; I know how to get rid of you once and for all but it won’t be just you. You’re only a puppet in this charade; this puppet theatre. I know your master, the Puppet master as the metaphor continues; he will be the one to finish the plot. When I finish with him, I finish with you, the lies he had spun and the lives he had destroyed.”
Jack turned as he spoke and sat down on the small steel chair that sat pushed under the desk. It’s cold touch less then comforting after the hell he had passed though to get here. Knowing what to do, how to end the story. Jack had told the truth when he said the ‘Puppet Master’ would die but he wouldn’t be the only one. Lacing his fingers onto the ivory keyboard, Jack began typing out the ending to the story, in which the protagonist, Jack Hunter, stood upon the precipice of the balcony just outside a pair of glass doors, the only other source of light to enter the room. Staring into the black and endless tide of puppets that had been constantly created thanks to his work; they flowed out under him like an ocean wave. Raising his fist high, Jack opened his palm to reveal the weapon he had devised, the only way to fight the darkness. With a deep breath, he jumped.

(REPEAT MESSAGE FROM TOP)
The Image here is of Revy from Black Lagoon and has nothing to do with the extract, I just wanted to put it here :D

Last Stand

Another little Ballad I wrote just now; inspired by Halo Legends’ “Prototype” I will also add this image from the Episode; a Perfect Image of the dead soldier Ghost leaves behind, a single rose to show his only feeling.

The Sky burned as they turned their weapons on the earth,
Ships flew overhead; reigning fire and death.
The 122nd held their ground, they must hold,
One after one they lived; holding the line.
The civilians fled to the evac’s; as hell reigned,
Many did not leave the world of flame;
their escape craft turned casket.
The 122nd held their ground, they will hold,
One after one they fell; holding the line.
Ammo ran short and the 122nd turned to blade;
“For Death” came the call; a command to charge;
Cut down like cattle; they fell.
The 122nd held their ground, they did hold,
One after one they Died; holding the line.

By Lewis Stockton

MCM Expo and Someone Awesome :D

Hello Everyone, Lewis here; just adding this quick blog post to explain something that will be happening during the London MCM October Expo. Me and a very dear friend of mine are going to be Cosplaying as Characters from my up and coming book “The Way The Stars Fall” I Will be playing Jack hunter and my dear friend will be playing the character I have wrote for her; named the same and acting the same.

So if you happen to read this blog and see us there, please come over for some pictures and maybe, just maybe, I may be giving away signed covers of the Book :) The book might even be out by then and I can sign copies for you.

Also at the Expo, I will be joining my fellow Tanith First in our Annual Saturday Cosplay Event, We are hoping to have around 25, yes… twenty five tanith. That is if it all comes out as it should; which most of the time it doesnt.

Anyway, If you wish to chat to me about my cosplay and the Tanith, please send me a message on facebook @ http://www.facebook.com/lewis.stockton.

The Best Is Yet To Come

 

Here is a little bit I wrote while on the Tanith Camping Trip, Sat in a Hamok on my own I decided to write something that would go along with the track of the same name from Metal Gear Solid 1’s soundtrack “The Best is Yet to Come”. Imagine if you will; a team of soldiers going in and getting ambushed, now the hunters chase down the last of the team, but he has outwitted them and runs through the snowy forrest, Slowly, the Hunters become the Hunted and the Last man begins his last stand.

The Best Is Yet To Come

The Men took another step forward.

The horn ran through the leaves,

Yet he carried on; Walking, a dead man’s walk

The men search and hunt for the lone survivor,

As he walks his dead man’s train,

Yet he walks on; walking his dead man’s walk.

The soldiers found his train; blood, footprints and dead comrades.

One long line of death, the barks of the Dogs of War.

Yet he carried on; Walking, a dead man’s walk.

He watched them approach, loading the last of his bullets,

They had no Idea he was that closes; waiting... waiting...

Yet he carried on; Walking, a dead man’s walk.

The Action barely last a minute; Sixty on one,

Fighting with rifle, pistol and knife, now he lay, staring at the stars,

No longer walking on; Sleeping, the dead mans walk.

 

By Lewis Stockton