Alan Wake's American Nightmare

 PC
User Score
6.7

Mixed or average reviews- based on 443 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 155 out of 443
  2. Mixed: 227 out of 443
  3. Negative: 61 out of 443

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  1. nemix3d
    Sep 10, 2023
    8
    Unlike everyone else I much preferred this to Alan Wake because I wasn't constantly submitted to cheesy scriptwriting and a game that was REALLY trying to be scary and instead it was as scary as a CYOOT LEETEL PANDA BEAR.
  2. Yakuzet
    Sep 7, 2023
    7
    It doesn't have the scary feel like the first one. It just turns into a fetch and step with uninteresting storyline. Not as immersing; but ok I guess.
  3. Umur
    Aug 23, 2023
    5
    Graphics - 5/ 10
    Story - 4 / 10
    Gameplay - 6/ 10
    Music / sound design - 4 / 10
    Map design - 5 / 10
    Conclusion: 5 / 10
  4. Ciocolici
    Jul 31, 2023
    8
    Alan Wake's American Nightmare falls somewhere between a spin-off and a sequel. While it continues the story directly, it feels more like a spin-off in its overall tone and presentation.

    Let's start with the story. It is decent, but when compared to the brilliance of the original Alan Wake, it falls short. The introduction of Mr. Scratch as an intriguing character adds some interest,    Alan Wake's American Nightmare falls somewhere between a spin-off and a sequel. While it continues the story directly, it feels more like a spin-off in its overall tone and presentation.

    Let's start with the story. It is decent, but when compared to the brilliance of the original Alan Wake, it falls short. The introduction of Mr. Scratch as an intriguing character adds some interest, but the overall concept lacks the depth and impact of the original game. Given the difference in scale between the two games, this discrepancy was somewhat expected. Nonetheless, considering its shorter length, the story is passable. However, my main disappointment lies in the change of the narrator. Alan Wake's narration, where we saw events from his perspective as he read and told the story, was a key factor in making the original game's storytelling so captivating. In American Nightmare, the narration is provided by a character from Night Springs, and while it's not necessarily bad, it lacks the emotional connection and immersion that Alan's voice lent to the experience. Nevertheless, the use of real actors in the cinematics is a commendable choice, with Alan Wake's actor delivering a solid performance. On the downside, the in-game supporting characters' dialogue with Alan feels unrealistic and somewhat disappointing.

    On the gameplay front, there are definite improvements. Combat and movement have received substantial upgrades, making Alan more responsive and agile. The camera is better, and Alan no longer feels exhausted after running short distances, resulting in a smoother and more enjoyable experience. Additionally, the game offers a wider array of weapons and enemies, addressing a potential issue of lack of variety from the first game. However, while the enemy variations are appreciated, the overall combat feels lighter and less intense than the first game, primarily due to the lack of the original's dark and eerie atmosphere. American Nightmare has shifted its focus from survival horror to action-adventure, presenting a lighter thriller story. The element of surprise is diminished as enemies spawn in waves, and the tension from being stalked by the Taken is less present. Consequently, the game feels less chilling and more lighthearted, though still entertaining. Thanks to the improved combat and movement mechanics, taking on the Taken can be a fun experience. The addition of the Arcade mode is a welcome inclusion, enhancing the game's action-packed nature.

    Regarding bugs, I encountered only one significant issue. The game occasionally fails to close properly, leaving a black screen after quitting. Without a second monitor and the task manager open, it becomes impossible to close the game. This can be frustrating for players without the necessary setup, leading them to restart or log out of their Windows account every time they want to exit the game.

    It's evident that Alan Wake's American Nightmare was never intended to be a true sequel but rather a light, side-story spin-off that explores the character of Mr. Scratch while providing a bit of additional story. Despite this, there is room for improvement. While maintaining its short duration, the game could have retained more of the original atmosphere, genre, and darkness that made Alan Wake memorable. However, as a separate experience, it is genuinely enjoyable and highly recommended for any Alan Wake fan.    … Expand
  5. Serkan0
    Nov 20, 2022
    7
    Oyunun hikayesini sevdim fakat oyunda bir sıkıntı var . Görev yerlerine gittiğim halde senaryoya girmiyor. Belki benden kaynaklıdır diye ayarları düşürdüm ama sadece birkaç görev ileri taşıdı sonra yine aynı oldu . Silip tekrar yüklememe rağmen fayda etmedi.
  6. neomoonsevin
    Nov 7, 2022
    10
    After the events of Alan wake Barry Wheeler became sons of asgards music agent they leave Brightfalls to go on the road and arrive at Nevada desert hotel to rest up before heading to a gig somewhere in America still sad over Alans Exit during Alan wake he turns on the tv to watch a episode of night springs and falls asleep this is where the game starts were now in a pocket universe ofAfter the events of Alan wake Barry Wheeler became sons of asgards music agent they leave Brightfalls to go on the road and arrive at Nevada desert hotel to rest up before heading to a gig somewhere in America still sad over Alans Exit during Alan wake he turns on the tv to watch a episode of night springs and falls asleep this is where the game starts were now in a pocket universe of Barry wheelers dream World featuring Alan wake this game is also connected to control aswell through the projector that features as an altered item in control an awesome game another favourite in my Xbox owned list you'll be abit pissed off U repeat certain parts of the game but the outcomes are different each time another awesome game I like it I own it aswell on Xbox awesome game… Expand
  7. Edik191
    Oct 26, 2022
    5
    Скучнее чем оригинал.
    Но из-за рус. озвучки Game Voice, песен и раскрытия главного злодея пойдет.
  8. BenzoSt
    Jul 12, 2022
    4
    A short sequel to the original Alan Wake game. The action is practically identical, except you can acquire more powerful weapons and the number of possessed goons out to murder you is higher. Unfortunately, it's quite easy even on the harder Nightmare difficulty. As for the story and dialogue, I found it to be disappointing, especially when compared to the excellent story and presentationA short sequel to the original Alan Wake game. The action is practically identical, except you can acquire more powerful weapons and the number of possessed goons out to murder you is higher. Unfortunately, it's quite easy even on the harder Nightmare difficulty. As for the story and dialogue, I found it to be disappointing, especially when compared to the excellent story and presentation of the original game. The included arcade mode provides a bit more of a challenge, but unfortunately wasn't particularly fun.… Expand
  9. StarkAgentos
    May 20, 2022
    10
    Прошёл игру за 2 часа. Разработчики значительно улучшили геймплей и убрали элементы ужастика. Офигенный сюжет, смешной юмор. Крутая игра.
  10. gold
    Feb 24, 2022
    9
    Неожиданно, но мне понравилось больше чем основная игра. Игровой процесс остался таким же но в разы меньше и это плюс. Сама игра не так затянута и из-за этого она маленькая, но это плюс. В общем, по геймплею, сюжету, и антуражу игра мне напоминает... Medal of Honor: Airborne. Маленькие локации, минимум задач - это мне и понравилось. Но всё ровно эта игра не дотягивает до Airborne из-заНеожиданно, но мне понравилось больше чем основная игра. Игровой процесс остался таким же но в разы меньше и это плюс. Сама игра не так затянута и из-за этого она маленькая, но это плюс. В общем, по геймплею, сюжету, и антуражу игра мне напоминает... Medal of Honor: Airborne. Маленькие локации, минимум задач - это мне и понравилось. Но всё ровно эта игра не дотягивает до Airborne из-за специфики жанра.
    Итог: 9.456/10    … Expand
  11. TEG_17
    Jan 31, 2022
    6
    Продолжение(скорее длс) лучше грфика, драйвовей геймплей, но в остальном уступает.
  12. petrkozak13
    Dec 13, 2021
    7
    Yes, in comparison to the original Alan Wake game, this one is pretty weak. But it's still fun and I enjoyed more time with the protagonist.
  13. Kelen
    Oct 9, 2021
    7
    7 / 10 - Good
    (after 11 hours of playing & completing the game)

    Short, addictive storyline.
    There is also an "arcade mode" - boredom.

    Technically everything slightly improved.
    More freedom, cutscenes with real actors, better graphics.

    A better, less coarse fight, although the basic assumptions remained unchanged.
    Opponents more diverse.
  14. gotterpotter56
    Aug 4, 2021
    7
    Проблему с оружием и с противниками, по сравнению с первой частью исправили, только вот сюжет и задания забыли сделать такими интересными как в первой . А про повторяющийся локации вообще не буду говорить. Было очень скучно и проходил дополнения только ради сюжета.Проблему с оружием и с противниками, по сравнению с первой частью исправили, только вот сюжет и задания забыли сделать такими интересными как в первой . А про повторяющийся локации вообще не буду говорить. Было очень скучно и проходил дополнения только ради сюжета.
  15. FRIST_008
    Jun 14, 2021
    6
    Плюс за экшен, но повторять одно и тоже больше 2 раз это занатто... и сюжет вообще не развивается, ну как так то? Зачем игра где сюжет стоит на месте?
  16. PublicNuisance
    Jun 12, 2021
    8
    Following a great game, even with an expansion pack, can be a tough balancing act. Alan Wake’s American Nightmare manages to do more good than harm to the series and, while it is of a different style than the original, shows that there are many ways to make a great game. The original Alan Wake was very much a light survival horror game. There were only basic firearms; scattered bits ofFollowing a great game, even with an expansion pack, can be a tough balancing act. Alan Wake’s American Nightmare manages to do more good than harm to the series and, while it is of a different style than the original, shows that there are many ways to make a great game. The original Alan Wake was very much a light survival horror game. There were only basic firearms; scattered bits of light to heal yourself; and while it wasn’t the hardest game around it manages to have a good amount of challenge without being sadistic. American Nightmare sheds a lot of the survival horror themes in favour of more action and black comedy. Gone are the basic weapons and in their place you get automatic weapons almost right away. This isn’t a terrible thing as the action is a lot more fun than the original but it lacks the tense parts you had and also gets way too easy. Never once did I feel challenged and never once did I die. Again, I’m not slamming the game nor am I angry because if you’re going to substitute tension for action and it is great action then I can make that work and enjoy it. Had it been sub par or not fun then it would be a different story. Some other differences are that the flare gun and flash bang grenades no longer have the ability to destroy enemies. Given the reduced difficulty this isn’t a terrible thing but it is unexplained why these enemies are somehow hardened against this attack all of a sudden. The game also lacked the ranged enemies of the original. All but one enemy were only effective close range which was another part that made the game easier. The game also has a more open world feel to it. The objectives require more travel and exploration with less paths blocked off. The HUD was improved to accommodate this with a great mini map. You can also unlock better weapons by finding the manuscript pages which gave extra reason aside from back story. The manuscript pages themselves now appear to move down the page as they get read which was a nice touch from the static pages of the original. The story was once again a fun and engaging ride. It had some holes in it such as just how the trap at the end actually works but overall I still highly enjoyed it. The black humour I mentioned earlier was also a great addition to the game. Your main nemesis this game is an evil alter ego of Alan called Mr. Scratch. He shows up on televisions to taunt Alan frequently as well as torture people. The music was also another strong point of the game. If Remedy came out and said they designed the whole game around the song “Clubfoot” by Kasabian then I would not only accept it but congratulate it. The game even manages to try to recreate a music scene like the one from the original where you fend off Taken on a concert stage. It wasn’t quite as good but still fun. The voice acting and characters were once again top notch. Alan; Mr. Scratch; Emma; Serena; and Dr. Meadows all were sued well and did a great job. The cut scenes were very high quality as well. Graphically the game was much the same as the original , not to say that as a negative. Even in 2012 this was still well above average in many areas.

    I played American Nightmare on Linux using Valve’s Proton. It never crashed on me. There was the same audio issue where cut scenes had no sound that was fixed with the launch command “WINEDLLOVERRIDES="xaudio2_7=b,n". There are 3 AA settings; 4 AF settings; 2 SSAO settings; a v-sync toggle and 7 other graphics options. There is an FOV slider but there are no numbers on it. Performance was better than the original with no dips below 60 with this game. You can pause and skip cut scenes. Alt-Tab works. The game uses checkpoint saves. With the open world nature of the game save points of light are scattered around the map so you can save more often. There is still just one save slot that gets overwritten. You can’t change the difficulty after starting the game although this time you can play Nightmare difficulty right from the start. There was one little glitch w=in a scene where Alan is handed a key card but no key card is in either of the characters hands.

    Disk Space Used: 2.32 GB

    Settings Used: 8x AA; 16x AF; All High; max draw distance @ 1080P; v-sync on
    GPU Usage: 66-100 %
    VRAM Usage: 1552-1789 MB
    CPU Usage: 14-30 %
    RAM Usage: 3.1-3.9 GB
    Frame Rate: 79-142 FPS

    A departure in tone and theme but a very fun and great game overall in it’s own right. It adds to the story in a meaningful way and adds things that make the change in style work. I finished the game on normal difficulty in 4 hours and 17 minutes. I paid $4.39 CAD for it and can say it is easily worth it’s current price of 10.29 CAD.

    My Score: 8.5/10

    My System:

    AMD Ryzen 5 2600X | 16GB DDR4-3000 CL15 | MSI RX 580 8GB Gaming X | Mesa 21.1.2 | Samsung 970 Evo Plus 500GB | Manjaro 21.0.6 | Mate 1.24.1 | Kernel 5.12.8-1-MANJARO | AOC G2460P 1920*1080 @ 144hz | Proton 6.3-4    … Expand
  17. uselence
    Apr 5, 2021
    5
    a great failure. or just a cheap way to make some money on the loud name of Alan Wake. if the last game had repetitive gameplay, this one just makes a freaking clown of you by leading through the same locations 3 times in a row. also the ending.. i don't understand it. and it makes me mad. and i don't even know if developers understand it themselves..
  18. Gorbunov2004
    Mar 25, 2021
    8
    Хорошее продолжение много видов оружия много видов новых монстров жаль что в конце не было ни какой финальной схватки но так игра получилась очень даже хороша.
  19. Bloodnes
    Feb 6, 2021
    6
    Пытался несколько раз пройти игру, но до конца оба раза не осилил, после оригинала данная поделка смотрится уныло, сюжет слабоват. 6/10
  20. SilverOrlov
    Jan 16, 2021
    6
    This DLC is good and interesting in high-quality graphics, compared to the original game, nice music and addictive texts from the found notes. This DLC is a normal in idea with time manipulations, and it is still the same story about the writer and his fight against darkness, as it is a continuation of this story (albeit with a little trick)... But this DLC is totally bad in all else: TheThis DLC is good and interesting in high-quality graphics, compared to the original game, nice music and addictive texts from the found notes. This DLC is a normal in idea with time manipulations, and it is still the same story about the writer and his fight against darkness, as it is a continuation of this story (albeit with a little trick)... But this DLC is totally bad in all else: The idea of time mentioned above is made in the most disgusting way, specifically with returning the player to the already passed zones. Three zones. Yes, only THREE... A thick atmospheric thriller turned into a banal action movie with a shooting range with waves of monsters... Excessively short duration, which is only exacerbated by the "three locations" mentioned above.
    And I think that the antagonist is made like an overly flared third-rate maniac from a banal third-rate American horror film about such maniacs. It was very repulsive and on several occasions I was almost ready to drop the game out of disgust for this character.    … Expand
  21. gamerz4life
    Oct 10, 2020
    8
    Alan Wake: American Nightmare was released under the Xbox Arcade series due to Microsoft turning down their proposal for the sequel, Alan Wake: The Return. Thus, it’s more like an expansion pack than an actual sequel. It’s about 6 hours in length and for that length; you get a pretty good addition to the Alan Wake story.

    The story starts out with a TV starting to play a Night Springs    Alan Wake: American Nightmare was released under the Xbox Arcade series due to Microsoft turning down their proposal for the sequel, Alan Wake: The Return. Thus, it’s more like an expansion pack than an actual sequel. It’s about 6 hours in length and for that length; you get a pretty good addition to the Alan Wake story.

    The story starts out with a TV starting to play a Night Springs episode, and turns into the narrator describing Alan and his situation after the first game. Then a live-action sequence starts with Alan looking around in a mist and we see Mr. Scratch appear behind him before he sends Alan into a desert type setting where we see Bird Leg Cabin sinking into the water nearby. Throughout the game, you’ll come across TVs in which Mr. Scratch is taunting Alan and showing him gleefully murdering people. You’ll also run across Mr. Scratch in-level and people who have interacted with him. The background and depth added to Mr. Scratch’s character (who was really only introduced with about 2 lines in the first game) makes him an amazing antagonist. You just want to see what offense he’ll get up to next and what he’ll do against Alan to make sure he never returns from the Dark Place.

    Gameplay-wise the game controls closely to the first game while feeling a bit different, probably has something to do with this being an open-world game. You will still be collecting manuscript pages though they’re spread across the open-world so there will be more searching for them though I did find all of them but one in my first playthrough. This time through page collection, you will be able to unlock different cases with different weapons to try out. It took a bit before picking up the nail-gun (advertised on the cover art) thinking it was a weak weapon but it turned out to be a really great weapon and a lot of fun to use against enemies. Ka-chunk, ka-chunk!! While you do repeat the same three maps, the maps change; how you enter them, where the enemies are, the characters remember you and set things up so you don’t have to redo everything each time. There are different enemy types though they are all still Taken so you’ll still be using your trusty flashlight. I didn’t care too much for the Splitter type but still managed to take care of them after a bit of effort.

    Overall, American Nightmare is worth playing. It’ll add more to Alan’s story and what’s going on back in the real world with him having gone missing. It’s a quick play too, so there’s no real reason not to pick this up if you loved the original Alan Wake. Hopefully now that Remedy bought the rights to the Alan Wake series from Microsoft we’ll see a true sequel in the future!    … Expand
  22. Dustfoxx
    Oct 8, 2020
    4
    A very short game which still somehow gets repetitive by cycling through three stages. As I've understood it the game is a survival arcade game with a story-mode crammed into it. The story is still a bit interesting and it plays well with a small variety of enemies. The one truly good thing it did was make me interested in playing the original Alan Wake.
  23. iddqd4
    Aug 31, 2020
    8
    Для DLC на 4 часа сделано все крайне достойно, стрельба атмосфера, на месте. Отсюда у Remedy начинается фулл моушен видео, которое дальше перерастет в полноценный сериал QB и видео вставки из Control. 8/10
  24. havrillal
    Aug 18, 2020
    5
    Nem tudom, hogy kinek készült ez a játék. Vagy azoknak, akik nem játszottak az első részével, vagy azoknak, akik egy teljesen lebutitott játékmenetre vágynak. Nem vészes, de szerintem ennél többet is kilehetett volna hozni belőle.
  25. kezzyhko
    Jul 26, 2020
    7
    ‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍
  26. Garian
    Jun 26, 2020
    6
    It's not quite as deep as the main game, however the live-action scenes do give the game a little more depth. Overall it was a pretty mediocre addition to the series with one major flaw in that people do not like repetition, no matter what plot point it'll ultimately unravel.
  27. Thejodjeremie
    May 8, 2020
    8
    The game is cool spin off of the original alan wake. There's lots of new weapons and environments to play.
  28. Skyware
    Feb 16, 2020
    8
    Главное,что стот знать об этой игре,так это то,что сюжет в ней чертовски хорош.Нет,серьезно, по этому можно книгу написать.Но вот графон оставляет желать лучшего.А так,неплохое продолжение оригинала,сохраняющее геймдизайн и атмосферу оригинала.Главное,что стот знать об этой игре,так это то,что сюжет в ней чертовски хорош.Нет,серьезно, по этому можно книгу написать.Но вот графон оставляет желать лучшего.А так,неплохое продолжение оригинала,сохраняющее геймдизайн и атмосферу оригинала.
  29. PanMrkvicka
    Feb 12, 2020
    5
    This is an insult to Alan Wake. But story is still pretty cool and the main villain is very well written character.
  30. Nameless2131
    Feb 6, 2020
    6
    7/10 -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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Awards & Rankings

56
#56 Most Discussed PC Game of 2012
94
#94 Most Shared PC Game of 2012

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
73

Mixed or average reviews - based on 15 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 15
  2. Mixed: 7 out of 15
  3. Negative: 0 out of 15
  1. PC Master (Greece)
    Aug 31, 2012
    86
    There's something vaguely heroic when you have set your desperate, one-in-a-million trap and you pull the lever, just when Kasabian's 'Club Foot' crashes in and you witness the satellite plummeting from the heavens, while oil-rigs explode all around you and the Taken scream for your blood. American Nightmare is a journey that you can't abandon, until you have reached its end. [August 2012]
  2. LEVEL (Czech Republic)
    Jul 29, 2012
    70
    We all had hopes American Nightmare would be more of a "full-featured" title. Though it's more like a stand-alone DLC. Nevertheless, fans of the original game should not avoid it. [July 2012]
  3. Absolute Games
    Jul 28, 2012
    55
    If American Nightware were an episode of an actual television series, I would have switched the channel long before the end of the first act.
    Read full review
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