I'm LTTP I know, but my work/life schedule doesn't afford me a lot of time to devote to any single game, so I spread my love around you know...but I digress.

Just finished AW and I must say this game is definitely greater than the sum of it's parts.  The complaint that the game gets repetitive, with little variance in enemies and tactics is fair.  So if you go into this game just expecting another shooter, you will be disappointed.

However, if you are at all intrigued by the story, I think you'll find that this game really has a lot to offer.  The manuscript pages, TV and Radio shows, and the episodic presentation absolutely NAIL the feel for this game.  OH I and I forgot to mention the music.  When Episode 1 ends and Roy Orbison started to play I was almost floored with the how perfect it was for the mood the game puts you in.  I also particularly liked the song War, by Poets of the Fall, and thought it was also perfect for the situation when it plays.

I don't think I would give this game a 10, as it is not without it's faults, but it truly was a ton of fun, with a fantastic story to boot.  This game is easily a 9/10 and I would highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys the genre.  Do yourself a favor when you play though; turn the lights down and the sound up, and ride the story.  I doubt you'll be disappointed.

I've only read the OP in this thread but I bought Alan Wake yesterday.  I just finished chapter 1 and so far, I already agree with you.  It's a damned shame that this game got burried when it launched (I planned to buy it on day 1 but I just got around to it).   From what I've seen and felt so far, it should've sold a million by now.  The game is epic!

Nice review and congratulations on getting your wife engaged in watching a video game.

I have not played Alan Wake, I am interested, but there are many and wide conflicting opinions on it. Here is a review from GameFaqs to counter your glowing Oscar nomination for Alan Wake:

http://www.gamefaqs.com/xbox360/928006-alan-wake/reviews/review-141597

The author JezebelTruant sums up Alan Wake as an "insulting, empty experience." If you read she will describe it as "completely lacking in the most crucial element of any game. Interaction and immersion..." Further on JezebelTruant elaborates,

"To elaborate on the fatal lack of immersion, Alan Wake is nothing but a rail system behind of smoke and mirrors of burning cash. You cannot interact with anything in your environment. You can't examine things. Approach a door and it opens. With no prompt from the player. You cannot even choose to open a door. There are several NPCs in this game-- but you cannot interact with them. Instead, stand vaguely near them to perhaps initiate dialog. Stand around and wait 30 seconds to see if they are finished when they stop speaking, or if they have anything else to say."

As for the replayability, JezebelTruant explains,

"This is the most linear game I have encountered on the next gen systems. You can't explore-- and even if you were to try, there is no point. If you advance to far, narration kicks in at a trigger point and spins events out of order. There are NO items in this game save a ridiculous abundance of ammunition and batteries for your flashlight. No health items, no puzzle pieces, no memos. Just a few keys that are right next to their use point. To top it off, the items that do make an appearance double as product placement."

Even more insulting, "Speaking of enemies, there are about three of them. Total. A guy with a hat, a guy with ear muffs and poltergeist wheelbarrows. Defeating them requires the exact same strategy, which is no “strategy” at all. Aim a flashlight at them and shoot them in the face/haunted aluminum siding/trucker hat."

I was thinking about picking up Alan Wake until I encountered many similar reviews like JezebelTruant's Alan Wake review on both GameSpot and GameFaqs.

You are not serious, are you?

SPOILERS WARNING:

HOLY CRAP, I came in here to say the exact thing! Even the score I gave it (in my sig) is similar to this.

 While the game is not perfect, it is definitely something that should be experinced.  I loved how the game was set up as episodes.  It gave me a quitting point every time  I sat down with it.  The way the manuscript pages gave more backstory while creating suspsense was brilliant.  There's not to many games that let you know what's going to happen but still keep you at the edge of your seat.  Alan Wake succeeds in doing this. 

Much like Heavy Rain, it's a game that needs to be experienced.  I think with the game being developed for 5 years, peoples expectations were too high for this game.  If you enjoy it for what it is, an intellingent, well written, action packed suspense game, you won't be disappointed. 

I did enjoy the content of your review also.  Gave a great description of what to expect.

Man, this game scared my ass so bad last night that I had to turn it off!  Really enjoying it so far.  Not perfect by any means but more than worth my money!  Can't wait for the family to go to bed so I can be terrified again.  Total darkness and surround sound is the way to go.  It feels like a perfect melding of the best parts of Resident Evil 5 and Silent Hill 1.  Hate it if you must, guys.  I'm having a blast!!

I know.  I refused to play the game unless it was at night with the lights out.  I use a pair of surround headphones at night so I can still get the full effect without waking the family as well.  I couldn't imagine playing the game any other way.  I can't wait for the DLC to continue the story. 

The most linear experience this gen? Has the author of the GameFAQs review played a little game called Final Fantasy XIII?

The game is structured like an episodic TV series; naturally it plays in a linear fashion.

While there seems to have been some compromises on the original concept (open world) and technical issues like resolution (for the most part masked by the AA), the end result was thoroughly enjoyable experience.

I played through it in a weekend and then immediately played through it again, which rarely happens with any games I buy.

Sure, the action did have a tendency to get repetitive, but for the most part the play mechanics were interesting enough to stay engaging.

Can't agree with this being the new watermark for horror games though. AW is a thriller with supernatural elements used as a key writing mechanic to propel the plot like many Stephen King novels. No, I didn't find any particular moments of the game to rate terribly high on the fear factor (being blindsided while trying to escape and not being able to run for more than ten seconds without getting winded rated pretty high on the annoyance factor though). And yes; I insisted on only playing through at night to complement the excellent ambience and selective use of light.

Best reason to own an Xbox in 2010 so far, but not without flaws (mostly technical, due to hardware limitations).