Alan Wake 2’s Lake House DLC takes cues from Annihilation and Alien

It’s been a chaotic 12 months for Remedy Entertainment. Last fall, nan developer was riding precocious erstwhile it launched Alan Wake 2 to captious acclaim. Since then, nan sequel has gobbled up awards and gotten much content, while Remedy itself has partnered pinch Annapurna to bring its franchises to nan large screen. That whirlwind twelvemonth is coming to an end, but not earlier 1 last triumph lap. Alan Wake 2’s The Lake House description is retired today, sending nan scary crippled disconnected successful style.

It’s not conscionable immoderate description ; it’s a crossover pinch Control that adds moreover much extent to Remedy’s shared crippled universe. Considering that each eyes are connected Remedy these days, it’s a important nexus up of Control 2 and nan series’ upcoming spinoff shooter, FBC: Firebreak. Ahead of today’s launch, Digital Trends said pinch head Kyle Rowley and DLC lead writer Clay Murphy astir nan task and really it fits into Remedy’s ever-expanding world. The squad explained nan balancing enactment of bringing different franchise into Alan Wake 2 while besides making thing that feels for illustration it’s still portion of that guidelines experience.

“We’re looking astatine nan world of Control done nan lens of Alan Wake 2,” Rowley says.

From Annihilation to Alien

During a preview event, Remedy showed disconnected 10 minutes of The Lake House to press. In nan slice, Agent Estevez of nan Federal Bureau of Control, enters nan DLC’s titular Lake House, which has antecedently been referenced successful Alan Wake 2. It’s a investigation abstraction created by nan FBC to study Cauldron Lake and its supernatural occurrences. And correct from nan jump, it’s very clear that it belongs to some Alan Wake’s and Control’s world. When Estevez walks in, we get a small spot of nan brutalist architecture that made Control truthful distinctive, but pinch an eerie Pacific Northwest looming retired nan windows.

The links betwixt franchises only tighten nan deeper she gets. There’s a hammy live-action video successful nan lobby featuring a mates of scientists explaining nan investigation station’s function, not dissimilar nan videos recovered successful some games. When she takes an elevator downstairs, nan lights spell disconnected and harsh reddish ones flip connected arsenic we spell into afloat endurance scary mode. The walls are abruptly swallowed up by colorful slime and Estevez has to flick done nan acheronian to find clues arsenic to what’s going on. It very overmuch looks like Alan Wake 2, but Rowley explains wherever Control’s DNA comes into play.

“If you play Control, location are a batch of documents to find that show a batch of nan story,” Rowley tells Digital Trends. “I consciousness for illustration our density of communicative objects successful The Lake House is rather comparable to Control to a definite extent, moreover compared to what we had successful Alan Wake 2. So there’s a batch of cool small nuggets to find astir nan soul workings of nan FBC, whether that’s emails aliases dossiers connected what they’ve been doing there, truthful we’re bringing a batch of nan world of Control done that exploration content.”

After a spot of searching, nan scary really kicks in. Lanky creatures peel disconnected nan walls, arsenic if they were perfectly camouflaged by nan colorful wallpaper. Before Estevez takes a changeable astatine them, she tries to travel FBC process by reference them their rights. They don’t listen, truthful nan bullets fly. It’s a funny small moment, but a functional 1 too. For Saga Anderson, nan FBI supplier astatine nan bosom of nan guidelines game, nan supernatural panic of Bright Falls was caller to her. To Estevez, this is business arsenic usual. The Lake House plays pinch that move done writing.

“The nosy portion for maine is nan connection nan different factions aliases groups use,” Murphy tells Digital Trends. “The measurement Alan talks astir nan Dark Place and Dark Presence is very different from really nan FBC talks astir these things. Using a characteristic for illustration Agent Estevez, who knows that lingo and knows really these things operate, to research that broadside of this world is really nosy arsenic a writer. I worked connected nan original Control, truthful that benignant of pseudo-scientific, paranatural babble is simply a batch of nosy to activity on.”

Remedy Entertainment

What stands retired is really overmuch The Lake House really feels truthful distinctly for illustration a Remedy game. The workplace has ne'er been awkward astir pulling inspiration from different media, pinch games for illustration Alan Wake firmly indebted to Twin Peaks and TV shows for illustration it. Even nan sequel took clear cues from True Detective to build its FBI procedural. It feels for illustration Remedy is much assured astir its ain sound and ocular connection here, building from its ain world alternatively of extracurricular media. That’s not to opportunity nan power isn’t there, though.

“For this peculiar description , erstwhile we were looking astatine nan scary and really to make it consciousness different … We were looking at, for example, Annihilation,” Rowley says. “We were trying to make things scary, but not conscionable revert to nan default of acheronian and black. How tin we usage colour successful a somewhat much absorbing landscape? So, we’re looking astatine popular civilization and really different movies and TV shows person utilized their ocular connection to get crossed circumstantial emotions.”

“The reference for maine for this 1 was really Alien,” Thompson adds. “Claustrophobic space. These are each group astatine their job. That’s nan point to retrieve erstwhile penning this. Everyone’s connected nan clock. People showed up coming and they sewage dressed for activity and this is their job!”

Those aren’t evident touchpoints astatine first glance, but each shows really skilled Remedy has go astatine combining its inspirations pinch its ain world to create thing each its own. The Lake House doesn’t conscionable consciousness for illustration a send-off for Alan Wake 2, but for illustration nan last portion that really locks down what a Remedy crippled successful 2024 looks and feels like. If thing else, that should get you moreover much funny astir where we’re going next.

Alan Wake 2: The Lake House is disposable now.