Alan Wake II will launch digitally for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, and PC via Epic Games Store on October 17, Epic Games Publishing and developer Remedy Entertainment announced. The standard digital edition will cost $59.99 / €59.99 / £49.99 on consoles and $49.99 / €49.99 / £39.99 on PC, and the Digital Deluxe Edition will cost $79.99 / €79.99 / £64.99 on consoles and $69.99 / €69.99 / £54.99 on PC.
“Alan Wake II is an intense story and a layered mystery that takes players on two disturbing journeys, running in parallel and echoing each other in strange and unexpected ways,” said Alan Wake II creative director and lead writer Sam Lake in a press release. “A newcomer to Alan Wake’s world, FBI Agent Saga Anderson’s investigation offers players a unique lens into this survival horror experience.”
Here is an overview of the game, via Epic Games Publishing:
About
A string of ritualistic murders threatens Bright Falls, a small-town community surrounded by Pacific Northwest wilderness. Saga Anderson, an accomplished FBI agent, arrives to investigate. Meanwhile, 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. Anderson and Wake are two heroes on two desperate journeys in two separate realities, connected at heart in ways neither of them can understand. 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?
Key Features
- Solve a Deadly Mystery – What begins as a small-town murder investigation rapidly spirals into a nightmare journey. Uncover the source of the supernatural darkness in this psychological horror story filled with intense suspense and unexpected twists.
- Alan Wake II introduces Saga Anderson, an accomplished FBI agent with a reputation for solving impossible cases, arrives to investigate murders in the small town community of Bright Falls. Anderson’s case spirals into a nightmare when she discovers pages of a horror story that starts to come true around her.
- Play As Two Characters – Experience both Alan Wake’s and Saga Anderson’s stories and see events unfold from different perspectives. Switch between Anderson’s life-or-death race to solve the case and Wake’s desperate attempts to rewrite his reality to escape the depths of the Dark Place.
- Explore Two Worlds – Experience two beautiful yet terrifying worlds, each with its own rich cast of characters and deadly threats. Discover majestic landscapes of Cauldron Lake in the Pacific Northwest and the idyllic towns of Bright Falls and Watery. Contrasting sharply, attempt to escape the nightmarish cityscape of the Dark Place.
- Survive With Light – With limited resources, take on powerful supernatural enemies in desperate close-combat situations. It takes more than just a gun to survive: light is the ultimate weapon in the fight against the darkness and will be your refuge when enemies threaten to overwhelm you.
Here is a FAQ from the official website:
What is the release date of Alan Wake II?
Alan Wake II will be launching globally on October 17, 2023.
What platforms is Alan Wake II being released on?
Alan Wake II will be available digitally for PC on the Epic Games Store, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S.
What is the story of Alan Wake II?
Saga Anderson, an FBI profiler with a reputation for solving unsolvable cases, arrives in Bright Falls to investigate a string of ritualistic murders. The case slides into a nightmare when Anderson discovers pages of a horror story, a horror story that starts to come true…
Alan Wake, a lost writer trapped in a nightmare prison beyond our world, writes a dark story to shape reality in a desperate bid to escape. Hunted by an insatiable horror, Wake struggles to retain his sanity and beat the devil at his own game.
Anderson and Wake, two heroes on two desperate journeys. Two separate realities connected in ways neither of them can understand. Echoes become reflections. Reflections that can reach out to each other.Trapped in a horror story where there are only victims and monsters, can they break out to be the heroes they need to be?
Do I have to have played the original Alan Wake to fully understand Alan Wake II?
Alan Wake II is a sequel but set up as a stand-alone experience. Newcomers can enjoy the thrill-ride with no past knowledge of the previous game. For the returning fans there are tons of lore and connections to be discovered.
Do I have to play Control or Control‘s AWE expansion to better understand Alan Wake II?
No, you do not. However, for fans who are into the universe of Alan Wake, it’s definitely recommended, but it’s completely optional.
Why is Alan Wake II a digital-only release?
There are many reasons for this. For one, a large number of have shifted to digital only. You can buy a Sony PlayStation 5 without a disc drive and Microsoft’s Xbox Series S is a digital only console. It is not uncommon to release modern games as digital-only.
Secondly, not releasing a disc helps keep the price of the game at $59.99 / €59.99 and the PC version at $49.99 / €49.99.
Finally, we did not want to ship a disc product and have it require a download for the game — we do not think this would make for a great experience either.
Is there a disc-based version of Alan Wake II in the works?
There are currently no plans to release Alan Wake II on disc.
What different versions of Alan Wake II will be available?
Standard Edition: Includes the Alan Wake II digital base game.
Price: $49.99 / €49.99 / £39.99 on PC and $59.99 / €59.99 / £49.99 on Consoles
Deluxe Edition: Includes the Alan Wake II digital base game and the following exclusive content:
- Expansion Pass (Night Springs Expansion and Lake House Expansion)
- Nordic Shotgun Skin for Saga (Part of the Expansion Pass)
- Parliament Shotgun Skin for Alan
- Crimson Windbreaker for Saga
- Celebrity Suit for Alan
- Lantern Charm for Saga
Price: $69.99 / €69.99 / £54.99 on PC and $79.99 / €79.99 / £64.99 on Consoles
Pre-order bonuses
If you pre-order Standard or Deluxe Edition, you will receive the following digital pre-order items:
- Ornate Revolver Skin for Alan
- Survival Resources Pack for Saga
What languages and localization does Alan Wake II support?
Subtitles and voice over (VO)
English, French, German, Iberian Spanish and Japanese
Subtitles only
Italian, Latin American Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, Polish, Russian, Korean, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese and Ukrainian.
Will Alan Wake II have post-launch support?
Yes! We will be supporting Alan Wake II post-launch with both free content as well as two paid expansions. The expansions are called Night Springs and the Lake House, but that’s all we are going to tell you about them. For now.
What is Alan Wake Remastered?
Alan Wake Remastered is a (wait for it) remastered version of the original Alan Wake (2012 PC version). For fans of the original, it’s a new refreshing experience of the game they love. For newcomers, it’s a great way to experience the classic Alan Wake on new platforms taking advantage of next-generation technology.
The remastered version contains the original game as well as “The Signal” and “The Writer” downloadable contents, which were originally sold separately, but are part of the Alan Wake Remastered package. The main game contains a brand-new developer commentary track from game’s writer and creative director Sam Lake that fans will not want to miss.
What is the story of the first Alan Wake?
Thirteen years ago, Alan Wake, a bestselling writer, together with Alice Wake, his photographer wife, came to idyllic Bright Falls, a Pacific Northwest small-town, for a vacation to fix their marriage and overcome his writer’s block.
There is an opening to the Dark Place, a nightmare reality, under Cauldron Lake. With Alice held hostage by a supernatural entity called the Dark Presence, Wake was forced to write a horror story to set the Dark Presence free. The Dark Place has the power to make fiction come true and rewrite reality. The Dark Presence infected numerous people and turned them into murderous Taken.
Using light as his weapon, Wake fought the Taken. He found a way to write a new ending to the story to destroy the Dark Presence. He rescued Alice but was himself trapped in the Dark Place.
What game engine is Alan Wake II running on?
Alan Wake II uses Remedy’s Northlight engine.
Tell me more about this Northlight?
Northlight is a focused, state-of-the-art game engine and toolset developed by Remedy Entertainment, empowering our games now and in the future.
Northlight’s plugin-based tools framework and adoption of USD (Universal Scene Description) enable our game development teams to customize their tools and content pipelines to suit their needs. The game runtime is aimed to perform well with ever-expanding virtual game worlds by having a modern and efficient game object model and a GPU-based geometry rendering pipeline.
We strongly believe in the freedom of developing our in-house technology with selected partners, ensuring we control our entire tech stack. Our creative and technology teams closely collaborate to create features that get players excited and make Remedy’s games stand out from the crowd.
Watch a new trailer below. View a new set of screenshots at the gallery.