Remedy Entertainment, the developer behind the upcoming survival horror game Alan Wake 2, has announced that the game is now fully playable from beginning to end. This marks a significant step forward for the development of the game, which is set to be released in 2023 for PlayStation 5, Windows, and Xbox Series X/S.
Remedy Entertainment has started a phase of stronger investment in 2022, as reflected in its financial results for the fiscal year. They are co-financing four games based on Remedy-owned brands, and one game is fully funded by a publishing partner. This investment is expected to increase as the projects move into the next stages of development in 2023. At the end of the year, Remedy had a cash position of 49 million euros, which allows them to allocate capital appropriately and play a larger role in game publishing.
In the fourth quarter of 2022, the company experienced a decline in revenue compared to the strong performance of the previous year. The fourth quarter of 2021 was exceptional, with individual revenue items such as the agreement for the codename Vanguard and the extended scope and budget for the development of Alan Wake 2 contributing to both revenue and profitability. Full-year 2022 revenue and profitability were impacted by increased investments in the game projects.
Alan Wake 2 is currently in full production and is expected to be finished soon. The game will have all content in place and will be playable from start to finish. The next step will be to polish the overall experience. Alan Wake is a valuable brand for the company and the release of Alan Wake 2 is expected to increase sales of the original game, particularly with the remastered version on new generation consoles. However, Alan Wake Remastered has not yet generated any royalties.
Alan Wake 2 is the sequel to the 2010 game Alan Wake and continues the story of the protagonist, Alan Wake, as well as exploring the stories of supporting characters. The game will feature new enemies and gameplay mechanics, such as the ability to rewrite reality. The development of Alan Wake 2 was temporarily postponed after the release of the original game, but Remedy acquired the rights to the series and signed with Epic Games Publishing in 2019 to develop and release two games.
The game will be powered by Remedy’s own Northlight Engine and is described as a survival horror game, with Remedy confirming that the game will remain in a third-person perspective and that both Ilkka Villi and Matthew Porretta will return to provide the appearance and voice of Alan, respectively.
Players do not need to have played the previous games to understand the story of Alan Wake 2, according to Remedy. The development team is now moving to the polishing phase, with the game on the schedule for its 2023 release.