Is Alan Wake 2 scary? Yes, with jump scares.

The whole process took only a few minutes. Alan Wake 2I want to jump. From the very beginning, Remedy Entertainment’s new sci-fi thriller has a lot of scares to offer — and I’m talking about classic jump scares, not just the moody atmosphere that pervades the entire Twin Peaks-esque setting. I didn’t expect this game to be as scary as it is, so let me issue a warning: Alan Wake 2 is freakin’ creepy, y’all!

[Ed. note: This article contains minor spoilers for Alan Wake 2.]

The first thing to note is that horror is subjective. It’s not just about what I think. You’re here because you want to know about the jump scares, so let’s get to it.

Remedy Entertainment/Epic Games Publishing

Alan Wake 2 kicks off with a very creepy scene, not least because you have absolutely no clue what’s going on. You start playing as a heavyset older white man who doesn’t look anything like Alan Wake and looks even less like Saga Anderson, the Black female FBI agent who’s the co-protagonist of Alan Wake 2,It’s possible I forgot to mention the most crucial part, which is that he is naked. And he is trudging — and later, running — through a gloomy, foggy forest.

What I found most disturbing was the fact that Alan Wake 2 wouldn’t let me look at this guy’s face. The guy at the bottom of the picture kept turning to the side, and I couldn’t see his face. Blair Witch. Turns out, that’s how the Alan Wake 2 camera works with almost every playable character — but in this opening scene, it’s even more restrictive against showing you the character’s face, probably to delay the reveal of this man’s identity. It turns out that he is Robert Nightingale – the FBI agent from the first game who was out to get Alan Wake.

While poor naked Nightingale runs through the woods, you’ll get your first of several jump scares. Complete with flashing lights (the game does open with a seizure warning) and super-loud music stings, you’ll see a flash of Alan Wake’s face, lit up like he’s holding a flashlight next to it for dramatic effect or something. Alan’s face is not scary in a vacuum, obviously, but the loud noise and flashing lights are jump-inducing. Nightingale’s journey through the forest will continue to bring about surprises as he continues on his way. His journey ends in a gruesome end at the hands a death-cult.

Remedy Entertainment/Epic Games Publishing image via Polygon

That death cult — and the murder of Nightingale — is what you’ll be investigating once you take on the role of Saga Anderson, whose story is where the game jumps to next. Saga’s sections involve exploring the exact same creepy woods, but unlike with Nightingale, there aren’t jump scares for Saga. Of course, that didn’t stop me from Think about it It would not be.

You won’t get another big scare until you get to the town morgue. This is when the game introduces the central mechanic for its supernatural enemies: If you’re standing in a lit area, they can’t see you. But if you tread into the darkness — as you must do, periodically, to escape or strafe around these opponents — they’ll be able to see you, grab you, and kill you instantly.

Personaly, I think the fighting scenes in The Walking Dead are more frightening than walking around the woods at night. It’s a world that is full of Alan Wake 2You never know what you will get. When I finally can, then it will be a different story. You can see the full list of languages below. an enemy, even if they look scary or unusual, I’m fine — I just need a pistol in my hand, because apparently bullets still work on supernatural entities (thank goodness?).

I’m not sure if my tips to make a game more scary are very effective. Alan Wake 2. There isn’t much you can do about a basic jump scare of a big face suddenly filling your screen, accompanied by a loud noise. There are some things you can do to make this game (amazing and thrilling) less stressful. I recommend turning off the orchestral score, while leaving the dialogue and sound effects on; the score is beautiful, but it also does a lot to heighten the game’s tense moments. Do remember to turn the music back on when you feel calm again so that you don’t miss out on the many original songs in the game, though.

What is my second big tip? Take your headphones out completely as required. The subtitle option includes characters names. Alan Wake 2There is a great deal of voiceover narration from characters who are not pictured. If you’re feeling overstimulated, you can always just read the game for a little bit, using the subtitles and character markers as a guide. This is something I only did for a short time before getting back to my full audio immersion.

As somebody who’s made it through plenty of great horror movies and scary games, despite my irritation at the way my body reacts to horror, you’ve got this. Alan Wake 2It is worth trying, so do your best.