It's now 8pm in Helsinki, which means Alan Wake 2's New Game Plus, The Final Draft, is now available across all platforms!
For those who don't know the terms, New Game Plus (or New Game+) is a gameplay mode that enables the player to complete a game and then return to the start with all the previously collected abilities and items unlocked. It's a way to build on your progress and successes while also factoring in your previous efforts.
The Final Draft continues the story from where we left our writer, providing a "new ending" which Remedy teases will "spark speculation and theories among our dedicated fans".
Your second experience won't be quite the same either. In addition to the ability to replay the game with charms, weapons, and character upgrades, there are now new video and manuscript pages in the experience, along with "other subtle additions". Keep an eye out for those changes, it's going to be an interesting game to replay, for sure!If weapons aren't showing up straight away, don't worry. For players wanting to jump in, all previously unlocked weapons will be available from the first available shoebox.
That's not all! Alongside The Final Draft, the update features a number of bug and performance fixes, and introduces a brand new challenge. Players can now dive into the Nightmare Difficulty for those who really want to take things up a notch.
Update: 11/12:2013 20:04 EET. To celebrate the release of the new mode, Sam Lake (Creative Director at Remedy) wrote an article for PlayStation Blog about the team's approach and desire to bring this feature to the game, and why it feels fitting for this adventure.
In the post, he writes "From the beginning, our plan was to create a New Game Plus mode for Alan Wake 2 as an essential part of the experience. When we started working on the game and the story, the idea was always there. It made sense on multiple levels. We were creating a dense experience. It felt that there was enough to support multiple playthroughs for all the aspects of the story to sink in, and for all the collectibles to be found and pieced together. With the New Game Plus, a clear motivation exists to do that."
You can read Sam's full article, HERE.
Source & Image: Remedy Entertainment
