11th December 2021 Alan Wake 2 Revealed At The Game Awards 2021 [& Post-Reveal Interview, PlayStation Blog, New Merch]

Ten years after his debut adventure, Alan Wake is officially returning in Alan Wake 2! The adventure was revealed this week at The Game Awards and is currently scheduled for a 2023 release on the Epic Games Store, PS5 and Xbox Series S|X.

Following the surprise teaser, Sam Lake (Creative Director at Remedy) took to the stage as the studio lit up the internet with new posts talking about the game. 

For the past five years, Remedy has adopted shorter times between their games' reveal and launch day; one month for Alan Wake Remastered and fourteen months for Control. The developer's decision to go public early this time was possibly in part due to the transparency of being publically-owned company. In March 2020, Remedy announced a new partnership with Epic Games for two new games set within the same franchise. When Alan Wake Remastered was announced, it confirmed that IP. The latest financial review (Q3 2021) announced that the second Epic Games project (now known as Alan Wake 2) entered full production in August. Of course, that wasn't the official reveal.

When it comes to Alan Wake 2's official reveal, Thursday 9th was a hectic day. Here's what happened:

Alan Wake 2 Reveal Trailer

It all began with a trailer...

Transcript: "We all come to a story with hopes and expectations, looking for an answer. Sometimes it would be better to live with that hope, without ever finding the story. This is not the story you want it to be. This story will eat you alive. This story is a monster... and monsters wear many faces."

The Game Awards Post-Reveal Interview

Following the minute-long trailer, Sam spoke to Geoff Keighley about the tone of the upcoming game, and when fans can expect to hear more. 

Transcript:
Geoff Keighley: I'm joined by my man, Sam Lake. Sam, thank you for coming all the way over from Finland for this. This is so exciting. Alan Wake 2, it's been a decade, fans have been asking you for it. Why is now the right time to bring him back?

Sam Lake: Well, Geoff, first of all, I want to say apologies; it's been raining here in Los Angeles today... it's on us. Fiction leaking into reality. So, sorry. Anyway, yeah, ten years- over ten years. Wanting to make this. Dreaming of making it. We've been iterating on the concept and we know fans have been asking for it. We've been a bit protective. We knew this is going to be a pretty scary experience.

Geoff: I was going to say!

Sam: And now we are convinced everybody is ready. You are ready?

Geoff: What kind of game are we going to get for the sequel? Can you tell us anything about it?

Sam: Yeah! We are breaking new ground here. This is going to be Remedy's first-ever survival horror game. Our take on the genre. The first game had horror elements to it, but it was an action game, and we feel that this is the perfect genre to bring together the story and gameplay closer than ever before, because the story - the horror story - is at the very heart of this and it's psychological layered, deep mystery to dive into.

Geoff: I can't wait! Y'know, you are such an incredible visionary. I can't wait to see what you're doing with this game. I know you said to me a while ago, this was your dream project and I'm so honoured that we got to announce this here at The Game Awards. So, we're going to hear more next year, I think?

Sam: Yes. Fitting to the theme, we're going to go dark for a while to work on this. We'll be back next year... Summertime, to show more.

Geoff: Alright! Summer 2022, more on Alan Wake 2. Sam thank you so much for that announcement.

Sam: Thank you

Geoff: Very exciting!

PlayStation Blog

Coinciding with the reveal, Sam also wrote an article for PlayStation Blog about what it has been like for the company to return to the series. While it didn't reveal more information about the sequel, it was a lovely letter to PlayStation players who have joined the story recently with Alan Wake Remastered, or saw the new trailer and wanted to jump on board for the first time. 

You can read the full letter, HERE.

"For over a decade, after Alan Wake, in between every project we have made, I have eagerly worked on Alan Wake 2 with a small core team, dreaming up different incarnations of the concept. But getting a large game project funded and greenlit is a complex effort that depends on many things, some of which are beyond our control. We never gave up hope. If anything, we grew more determined as years passed. Each version of the concept felt better than the previous one. It is easy to feel happy and excited now that Alan Wake 2 is finally happening based on our latest iteration of the concept, and not the ones that came before that. We’re so happy to be at this point, after so much hard work, sharing our excitement with you."

New Alan Wake 2 Hoodie

To celebrate the reveal, the developers have posted the first piece of official Alan Wake 2 merchandise. In true Remedy-form, the dark teal hoodie features the logo on the front left and the tagline "monsters wear many faces" on the back. The piece is available exclusively through the Remedy Store for €65,00 (tax included, delivery to be calculated at check-out). Due to logistic issues, the store is unavailable to ship to the UK or Russia. 

Alan Wake 2 hoodies are in stock now! #AlanWake

🛍️ Get yours: https://t.co/g5kb2gHWz3 pic.twitter.com/QaMo066Nkc

— Remedy Store (@rmd_store) December 10, 2021

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