When it was first announced back during the Game Awards 2021, the reception surroundingAlan Wake 2was a little lukewarm. Though Remedy Entertainment is an incredibly talented studio, withrecent titles likeControlreally showing what it’s capable of, theAlan Wakebrand never really took off, with the 2010 original being a critical hit but not really a commercial one since it released in the same week asRed Dead Redemption. But over the last year or so, the buzz surroundingAlan Wake 2has been gradually getting louder, and thanks to Summer Game Fest, the hype train is finally picking up steam.
During Summer Game Fest, press finally got an opportunity to seean extended gameplay trailer forAlan Wake 2, and according to subsequent preview write-ups, it was the highlight of the entire event. Taking the supernatural, spooky crime thriller and giving it aResident Evil Remakemakeover,Alan Wake 2seems like a perfect continuation for the series, but it’s making one big decision that’s proving quite controversial - even if that choice comes with clear benefits.
RELATED:Alan Wake 2 Needs To Properly Balance One Iconic Mechanic
Alan Wake 2’s Digital Release Could Kill Two Birds With One Stone
Back in May,Alan Wake 2received its first gameplay trailerduring the PlayStation Showcase. Immediately following the reveal, Remedy Entertainment released an FAQ on the game’s website. Fans were quick to spot thatAlan Wake 2would apparently only be receiving a digital release, with no plans for physical copies to be released in the near future at all. While it’s not completely unheard of for a game to release first digital-only and then physically a few months later, like Nintendo’s recentMetroid Prime Remaster, it is unusual for a high-profile game likeAlan Wake 2to forego a physical release altogether.
Naturally, this has proved fairly controversial. For many gamers, the gradual shift to a more digital output from developers and publishers has been an unwilling one. Many gamers simply still prefer to own their games properly, and the only way to do that is by having the disc or cartridge in their hands, as owning a game digitally means that publishers can delist it in the future, which seems to be a growing issue. But it’s not all bad, andAlan Wake 2’s digital-only approachdoes have some upsides.
The biggest upside toAlan Wake 2going digital-only is that it gives Remedy more time to work on the game. When games are released physically, developers are often forced to spend a good portion of the final months of development time putting a finished version of the game on a disc. Though developers can now update their games after release, nobody wants a huge day-one patch, especially not the developers. ReleasingAlan Wake 2digitally allows Remedy to ensure that it’s completely ready to go on the day of release, hopefully leading to a more polished product overall.
A second, more subtle benefit toAlan Wake 2foregoing a physical releaseis that it will probably limit any potential leaks. Pre-release leaks have become a staple of the industry over the last decade or so, and the common cause of it is early copies being released in the wild. It’s often the case that a store will break the street date for a game, either intentionally or accidentally, and then the moment those copies are given to consumers, leaks start to sprout up all across the internet. And once those leaks are out, there’s no containing them. With no physical copies,Alan Wake 2might hopefully avoid this tiring process altogether.
Alan Wake 2releases June 29, 2025, for PC, PS5, and Xbox X/S.
