10 Flawed Video Games That Are Actually Masterpieces

9. Alan Wake

Remedy

Running around the formidable forests and vertiginous heightsof the American Rockies and shining your flashlight into the faces of lumberjacks - it sounds more like anannoying pastime that pesky mountain teensget up to rather than a AAA video game, butit really is better than it sounds.

Alan Wake follows the titular writer as he retreats to the sleepy Washington State town of Bright Falls to try and overcome his writer's block. But whena mysterious dark force begins to take overthe area, kidnaps his wife, and is seemingly bringing to life a nightmarish story of Wake's that he hasn't yet written, Alan takes up his torch and heads out to face the darkness.

The gameplay - which sees you softening enemies up with a torch before shooting them with regular guns - doesn't have much variety, but the game is oozing with a nocturnal atmosphere that feels like one of those high-intensity nightmares, and the story is a memorable mind-bender that you can spend hoursdissecting.

Alan Wake is a game that breaks with convention, and while it doesn't always do so successfully,it's damn near sublime when it does.

Contributor
Contributor

Gamer, Researcher of strange things. I'm a writer-editor hybrid whose writings on video games, technology and movies can be found across the internet. I've even ventured into the realm of current affairs on occasion but, unable to face reality, have retreated into expatiating on things on screens instead.