Remedy Defends Alan Wake Changes

Alan Wake developer Remedy has explained its decision to remove sandbox elements from the long-awaited action adventure game.

[Natsu X FairyTail]

"It's not a good mixture with storytelling. For it we would have been forced to make such compromises in the game that we at Remedy don't want to. The most important thing for us is a compelling story and so we decided to go in that direction"

Amen.

I dont mind if they removed the Sandbox part of the game because Theres WAYYYYY to many Sandbox games nowadays and for somekind of reason that's the new trend in gaming.
Imagine playing a Resident Evil 1 , Silent Hill 1 type of game in a Sandbox type of game! that's a big WTF.

[Maticus]

What he said..

[Leord]

Everything is not fun in a sandbox :)

[Dorjan]

agreed

[shingo]

Am I the last one who got to know this!? :(((((((

It's no longer a sandbox game? Man, one of the MAIN reasons why I was very interested in this game is its sandbox nature with all those beautiful graphics. This is seriously a huge letdown for me. :(

And to those who agree with this step by Remedy, well yeah now the game is more focused on the story but be sure that it has lost a huge portion of fun elements. I was very impressed in 2007 when I saw the first screens of the game. That stunning, dynamic world NEEDS to be free-roamed. :(

[GVON]

No way,I was looking forward t just driving around searching for stuff and getting freaked out if I broke my car,then having to roam the woods trying to find a hut or something.

I was left slightly disappointed by the stage demo,and now this :( been waiting for it since I seen it my UK OXM all those years back so my hype has died a little.
But at least the atmosphere is good,but I get a feeling the scale the people/press had once assumed from early previews was more than remedy could deliver,and i'm guessing the game was scrapped more than once during development

[Syronicus]

That it was a sand box game and looked absolutely amazing at the same time. Now I understand why the demo at E3 looked so good. They got rid of the sand box aspect of the game and were then able to ramp up the graphics. If I had it my way, I too would do as they have since sand box games are not entirely my cup of tea.

We all know that most, save for inFAMOUS, sandbox games do not look as good as other genre titles because of the size and scope of the game so for them to drop the sandbox idea and make a better looking game here is the best choice possible IMHO.

[shingo]

I'm starting to believe they had faced some technical issues and found it best to drop the open-world elements. That "more focused storytelling" excuse I don't buy.

When they showed the game back in 2007, one of the key points Remedy told us that it's a sandbox horror adventure. This is how I have always thought of Alan Wake. Until now >:[

Maybe it was a mistake to show the game to the public that early. Damn hype.

[Marcelles25]

in 05 they announced it for the 360 and pc. every bit of footage they shouwed running it was on pc and it showed realtime lighting and open sand box roaming then E3 09 comes they show first footage on 360 and no longer open world!? it just makes you think.

MGS4 has a great story not because its linear but because they have CUTSCENES and they dont have to sacrifice the sandbox element.

they could of been innovative with the way they told the story like Splinter cell how things super impose off the walls

they made this move purely because the 360 couldn't handle it and to tell you the truth i dont think the ps3 could handle it because both systems dont have enough ram and thats the most important hardware for a sandbox title thats ............

[Marquis_de_Sade]

I'm glad, I can't stand sandbox games. My favourite are games with multiple routes or ways through levels, like MGS4 or Halo to some extent.

[ThanatosDMC]

I thought it was gonna be bigger than Silent Hill games since SH is somewhat linear except for those instances when you go for a more different ending.

Guess, we cant drive off cliffs or whatever crazy stuff we do in sandbox games.

[Shepherd 214]

and anyone else that thinks this is a problem,

You have to understand this from a developer's point of view. I completely agree with Remedy on this decision because i believe a well told story is the most important aspect to this type of game, and if you try to include sandbox elements, it makes things much more difficult.

Not only will you have to deal with budget concerns, but you also have time constraints, technical issues like trying to program good A.I. that will function decently is a sandbox world, and simply put, they would have to sacrifice other aspects of the game(such as story, maybe some other important details that require much attention) in order to make the sandbox style work. They would have to pure more resources into the sandbox stuff and spend less time crafting a great cinematic experience. Do you nerf the story aspects in order to make a game that many other games have already mastered? or do you make a compelling story, something that few games try to do?

I am glad that the story i am looking forward is not being compromised for something that i feel is less compelling and interesting. From the start, Alan Wake was promised to be a cinematic experience, something that has drawn in gamers who enjoy a great story for 5 years now, all of them following Alan Wakes development. For me they are making a responsible decision. This sort of situation is not as easy to solve as many of you would like to believe.

[edgeofblade]

If they start talking about the story as the most crucial part of the game, you know the game will suck. Games that put too much emphasis on story usually have under-developed gameplay. There are certainly exceptions, but that's the general rule I follow.

[talltony]

they removed the open world elements out of this game. It is blatantly obvious it is because of the limitations of dvd 9.

[Greywulf]

Not only were there excuses for the graphics saying "well its because its a sandbox.. thats why it doesn't break any new ground or look like Uncharted" Remedy ran up against the reality of the 360, and now they have removed the sandbox portion from the game, which I imagine is a re-write of an entire engine, and it still didn't get any nods at e3. more than likely because this was the version they've only been working on the mechanics recently, not the PC-Tech demo version from 2005.

So we are here, in 2009. Alan Wake isn't sandbox, and its visuals aren't on par with Uncharted, let alone Uncharted2. There was a ton of "wait for alan wake" talk as far as showing off the capabilities of the 360.

There you go.

Sure it will be a good game. But We have to go from 2009 on, since nothing else applies.

[himdeel]

...and was not a sandbox game. I think Remedy will make a great game and fans will be very satisfied to me that's what really matters. I can't play sales. Even while the prospect of this game being sandbox at one time was very exciting it's still should be a great experience.

[Blaze929]

Who the hell was attacking/complaining about the change? They know what they are doing, its Remedy.

[SL1M DADDY]

This game was hyped to be the best looking title to hit the Xbox 360 in the near future and now it's just another action horror game... Boy, the future sure is not as bright as it was a few months back.

[MrEko]

Cause I've always had the feeling there aren't enough sandbox games. Especially, good ones. I don't have enough time to list cut scene, mission based games and First Person Shooters but, I guarantee there are more of them than sandbox games.

On the flip side. I totally agree with their decision if it is what is best for the game. There is nothing worse than a crappy sandbox game or a sandbox game that acctually isn't (Think Driv3er). If their hearts aren't in it to make it a sandbox- so be it.

[shingo]

@ Blaze929: Dude, tons of people are disapointed by this. Go to the official forums and see it for yourself. I'm disapointed to be honest and my hype went down much.

And I don't get how some here are comparing the success of non-sandbox games like Resident Evil or MGS to Alan Wake, lol. Those are different things. This game was first shown as an open-world horror adventure, that's the MAJOR idea the game is built upon and in a way it could have redefined the horror genre with that.

It's like one of the posters here said "it's no longer the same game". It could turn out to be good (please don't be another Alone in the Dark) but it's definitely not the Alan Wake I was hyped for.

[orange-skittle]

@ Marcelles25

WTF are you talking about? When was MGS4 a sandbox game? The game is linear. Just because you have a broader scope to walk around in doesnt change the fact that the game initiates cutscenes when you take the designated path. There's no side missions or alternative endings that change the initial outcome?

These people did Max Payne, why would you question their decision making...you're all just nerds. These people get paid to make AAA titles and you can clearly see Alan Wake has a complicated story. Especially since light plays a big role in the game. He cannot eliminate the shadow spirits w/o light. Sometimes the flashlight batteries go out and he has to find alternate sources, so how do you encompass this element in a sandbox game? Use your f-ckin' head and stop thinking like a nerd that collects hentai pics and movies.

[Marcelles25]

im gonna take it you didnt understand me

look at my comment, "MGS4 has a great story not because its linear but because they have CUTSCENES and they dont have to sacrifice the sandbox element. "

Rephrased,"MGS4 has a great story not BECAUSE ITS LINEAR but BECAUSE IT HAS CUTSCENES and they (being REMEDY) dont have to sacrifice the sandbox element for story telling if they added cutscenes..............

[GWAVE]

This is sad. Alan Wake was hyped up to be an epic game of epic size and scope with a huge world to explore. And of course, the huge world PLUS the great graphics is part of why people payed attention to it (much like the original Far Cry and Crysis: size + graphics).

But now we're saying goodbye to the open world. Oh well. I'm sure the media will find a way to spin this around and make it look good. I'm gonna laugh when next week we see some article titled "Uncharted 2 isn't open-world because of limitations in the Cell".

[Arnon]

Lol? They said that there's still exploration in the game. The only people who are complaining from what I see are people who's comments do not even belong in this thread.

"This game's gonna suck! We all know how Remedy is! They make terrible games and lie to us and have ever since FOREVER!"

First off, the whole "sandbox" thing? Yeah, that was talked about back in 2005 and then went into the shadows. So I'm not sure where you guys are getting the fact that 2005 = 2009. If you saw the footage/gameplay/screenshots back then and saw what it is now, it's almost done the Splinter Cell: Conviction.

Secondly, just shut up. None of us have played the game. The only justification of how good this will be is to look back at their past creations. Which, to say the least, were revolutionary.

Time to round um up.

SL1M DADDY
Greywulf
Shingo
Dustgavin
Vx_

Mods, where are your bansticks?

[cyberwaffles]

i'm probably talking out of my ass, but could it be that free roaming would be too much for the 360 to handle? i mean from what i saw during tech demos on the PC, i couldn't possibly see the 360 or even the ps3 pulling it off. not taking potshots at anyone, just wondering if there was actually technical limitations with the console version which forced them to pull back some features and gameplay elements.

i could all be wrong and just speculating, but i know there has been a lot of bullshit talk from developers and PR's in the past such as sony saying the reason they got rid of rumble for the sixaxis because it was "last gen" and it interfered with the sixaxis motion sensor in the controller when it was actually because of a lawsuit.

i do agree that the sandbox style of gameplay could have possibly compromised the story, but i still think the story could've been perfectly in tact no matter what. imo, it's possible to make a very linear game out of a sandbox game (no matter how oxymoron that sounds.) just my two cents.

[Trebius]

Because it's obvious.

They were shooting for the stars.

The limitations of their hardware didnt even let them out of the atmosphere.

The PR they're doing with the excuse that they needed to focus on the story more is just nonsense...

A very ambitious game that turned out to be overly ambitious. But at least there are Developers out there trying new things.

[JokesOnYou]

If Remedy thinks this decision will make a better more focused game on storytelling, and gameplay rather than sacrificing a bit of one of these more important elements for "free raoming" then I'm all for it....the game is looking amazing and the E3 demo looked like spooky fun game, so strip away the open-world aspect and you're left with a awesome action-horror game.....I'll take that any day vs an unfocused game that had so much potential but ultimately wasn't as good as it should of been because the dev's didn't make the right decsions for the game. Remedy knows what their doing....I don't make a lot of predictions, but I'm usually right when I do, you watch, AW will be awesome....well based on what we've seen so far and Remedies track record its really a no brainer.

JOY

[SL1M DADDY]

Go cry to mommy little one. It's called an opinion and last time I checked, it was OK here to have one. If you don't like it then make your own website and play Nazi and ban anybody that doesn't agree with you.

[Arnon]

"LOL @ the fanboys that defend this crap."

"@ Pennywise
Not true!!!

If it were released on two discs, then it could be officially called last gen."

"What do you mean no weather? No night? No ralley racing?

What a joke! I was at least expecting that with two DVD's and only 400 vehicles that they could at least toss in a night driving level or some dirt tracks. And this is supposed to compete with GT? Really?"

These aren't opinions. This is trash. Especially in a place where you do not even like the thing they're talking about. That, by the way, is trolling. Open Zone is your turf.

[GUNS N SWORDS]

splinter cell conviction's half stealth half sandbox, crackdown2 is a sandbox, assassin's creed 2 an other sand box game, GTA4's 2nd dlc......more sandbox.

i got over 150 hrs of sandbox rigth there, do i really need 20 hrs more?

people, has anyone yet gotten the chance to fully complete gta4...once. (let alone twice like i have :)

ok with that out of the way, frankly it didn't even cross my mind that this game was going to be a sandbox game. (if you look at the gameplay it all points to a "pre-determined" pathway, if you correctly look at it.)

http://www.gamersyde.com/st...

honestly i'm fine with whatever gameplay style remedy wants alan wake to be, i just want the game to look like the way it does right now, and to be done.

[whothedog]

AW will still probably be good but I think the main reason it stood out is because of the sandbox aspect. I'm sure they can take it out and rework the engine/game so that its still a good game but I don't think it will be as memorable as if it followed through with the sandbox side of it.

Only thing I question is how long did they change this and why are they now telling the fans/followers of the game of these details. I don't really care why just seems like they would have had to make this decision awhile ago and if that's true than why we hearing about it now.

[Marcelles25]

THE REASON WHY THIS GAME WAS GNNA BE BIG IS BECAUSE IT HAD GOOD GRAPHICS AND WAS AN OPEN SANDBOX....THATS WHY THERE WAS SO MUCH HYPE BEHIND IT

and now remedy cant live up to what they PROMISED at the beginning and then they use a cover up like,...Well we needed to have a good story

well if they are good developers (which they are) they should of found away to incorporate the story in a unique and more interesting/innovative type of way

[beans]

"Alan Wake isn't sandbox, and its visuals aren't on par with Uncharted, let alone Uncharted2."

Wow...trolling at it's finest lol.

[GiantEnemyCrab]

"Lol? They said that there's still exploration in the game. The only people who are complaining from what I see are people who's comments do not even belong in this thread."

Exactly. It's the same usual suspects Greywulf, TallTony, Sl1mDaddy. It's the same PS3 fanboys that whine and complain about 360 constantly. These guys could give 2 sh*ts about this game and they are acting like drama queens. I'm on the Remedy forum and people are NOT freaking out about this.

This is FN Remedy and they have their reasons and don't give this DVD9 crap a go when you have no grounds for any of your slams on this game. Their is still exploration, the graphics still look off the hook and the atmosphere is still the same and looks excellent.

[Whut]

the game will still be good.

[y0haN]

I think we can give them the benefit of the doubt, it's Remedy. Max Payne & 2 were amazing games.

[cmrbe]

then why did it take 5 years for them to come to this descision?.

It really dosen't look good for them or this game. Sounds like Too Human to me.

[JokesOnYou]

The game STILL has exploration....however it is understandable if some 360 fans are dissapointed that it won't be a full sanbox game, honestly I didn't know it was originally suppose to be a sandbox title until recently. Reading the forums and previews I always thought the hook was the story and the use of light/dark was what many talked about, including weather and graphics. All of that is still there...so I don't see anything worth "defending" on Remedys part...and not surprising the ones complaining the loudest are the usual ps loyal folks.

JOY

[rockleex]

Just imagine if it was a PS3 game that went through this.

The internet would self-destruct with the amount of articles claiming Sony's death.

[Chazmers]

I think Alan Wake is going to be hyped into something that it wont be able to deliver. If the removal of the sandbox environment does lead to a compelling story then I will be all for it. I'm going to be sitting on the fence until I play this.

[Leord]

Well, there's of course always the risk removing features is just that - a feature that is removed, and the game is less for it. I think this seems like a positive change though...

[AndyA]

It's worrying though isn't it? A very long development period and changes so late in the day?

[Natsu X FairyTail]

not really.

Remember SplinterCell:Conviction's 1st Style of Game?

it was kind of a Sandbox game but in the end they went back to the board and came up with this new Style that looks even better than what they had showed us at the past E3s .

plus its remedy we're talking about! Only Quality!

:)

[Fyzzu]

Are these changes late in the day, though? Bear in mind we haven't really heard anything about Alan Wake in a long, long time - E3 was the first "reveal" we've had on it for what seems like years. This might've been in the works for awhile.

[Fyzzu]

Come to think of it, Max Payne is a pretty good comparison for them to make. In much the same way, we had absolutely no info on that for ages and it started popping up on vapourware lists before there was the big reveal and media blitz just prior to release, with a lot of stuff (as the post said) changed.

[AndyA]

Fair point and I do have some faith in Remedy. Just wasn't convinced by the E3 demo.

[Vx_]

da game guna be shorter for sure

[KingsofOmega]

Guerilla were practically getting hatemail for not having Co-Op in Killzone, and now Remedy remove basically the entire gameplay, form a game with an even longer development cycle, and suddenly this is a 'great move'?

I hope this gets ripped to shreds by reviewers.

[GiantEnemyCrab]

^^^^^ Grow up!

[raztad]

@KingsOmega

While I may understand your feelings there is not need to hate the game.

Ontopic: I'm wondering what have been doing Remedy all this time? probably trying to push the hardware?, trying some new gameplay mechanics?. AW is a very good looking game, I hope Remedy got some innovative gameplay in there. That said, I didnt like the whole "narrative" style.

[frayer]

/facepalm

[frayer]

Poor bots. The limitations of the 3fixme continue to hold back games. Now Alan Gimped is just some Alone in the Dark clone.

Poor welfare bots will gimp FFXIII just like Alan Gimped.

[-MD-]

Sorry you can't play it.

Nice double post by the way /facepalm

[tha_meat_beater]

just to get it to run on the gimpbox 360.

[Vx_]

Ill get it for PC but with the nerfs they are doing to the game (so that it can run on the 360) Ill be waiting for reviews 1st.
graphic nerf = check
game's environment size nerf = check

[-MD-]

Nerfs? You're probably a World of Warcraft player. Sorry bud but your bad computer won't be able to run this game.

@ Loney guy AKA 1.3 - It's already running on 360 sorry to disappoint.

[AngryTypingGuy]

"next they'll have to downgrade the graphics, drop the frame rate, and cut a few chapters" -- no see, this is an XBOX 360 game, they usually only have to do those things on the PS3.

By the way Frayer, if you actually read the article, you'll see that they did that for storyline reasons and not limitations.

[Vx_]

btw my PC run most 360s games and they even look better(was playing the crap ME game), additionally i can add different patches to the game,, bet you don't even know what um talking about

[-MD-]

God I really hate the way you type lol.

[dustgavin]

LOl! 360 fans actually think that they made the changes for storyline reasons.

Nope. It is because of the Dvd9 limitations showing their true colors.

[The_Beast]

why would u say somthing retarded like that when i can get it for my pc

[Defectiv3_Detectiv3]

Don't get me wrong, I'm sick of sandbox games, but I always loved how the old school Resident Evil games were like mini-sand box games. They just let you loose in an environment(mansion, police station, lab) and you had to find your way around, a lot of time revisiting the same locals, but that made the puzzle elements funner.

The whole open world theme works well w/ horror games(Resident Evil, Legacy of Kain, Silent Hill)

[NewZealander]

double face palm lol, frayer is gimped!

[jBat17]

what makes it so special compared to say silent hill or RE5? the graphics they showed at E3 was no better than those two.. it looked good for a sandbox game but it was no better than RE5

[TenSteps]

My anticipation for this game grows more and more each day

[TheHater]

You have no need to defend anything if you have a good game on your hands. I do not think any developer should explain themselves to anyone other than their publisher.

[La Chance]

So you think they shouldnt explain themselves to gamers and fans that have been following the games for 5 years ?!

I think its the least they can do plus it allows people to know what the game is really about.

Its like Lionhead deciding to make Fable a hack and slash and not telling anyone. Thats pretty stupid in my opinion.

[TheHater]

No they should not. If they think the new direction the game is headed in is the correct direction for them, then they should not explain it to the gamers. Only the publisher they should explain that to.

[DARK WITNESS]

well i personally think they should tell us when they change something as big as this.

sure its not a "must " like we the games are going to hunt them down and shoot them for not telling us... and yes the only people they really have to answer to is the publisher.

but you announce you are adding such and interesting dynamic to a game and then cut it out it can really bend the way the game is perceived.

If they are not sure about what direction they are taking a game, then they should just not say anything about it at all, instead of telling all the fans we are doing this and this and then do a u turn and not deliver.

If they don't want to answer to us in the first place then don't promise us anything, don't tell us anything, don't get us involved at such an early stage of development.

I am the sort of gamer that will instantly toss a game out if i feel i have been lied to ( ok, maybe thats a harsh way of looking at it ) let's just say really under deliver.

In the case of Alen wake, the story is more important and i hope it is for the better. still i am slightly disappointed. The point with most sandbox games is the story is linear anyway, but the you can go of the straight and narrow story path to explore, mess around, or do some little side missions which just give you a reason to keep going back for some light hearted gameplay

anyway, i am still looking forward to it and of all the 360 lineup at E3, i was most impressed with this game, followed by Forza 3 and SC.

[free2game365]

That's a lot of BS, look at Mafia for the PC. Amazing story/pacing in a sort of open world design. It used open ended exploration and travel as a pacing tool between the purposely built levels in it and it had one of the best stories in a game in the past few years.

[Natsu X FairyTail]

How you gon compare Mafia a action stuff game with a thriller/Horror game?

Mafia is on par with GTA and Scarface and games like that but you can't be having a Horror game with a character that can go everwhere and roam out of the action at any time to go and see HOW GREAT AROUND TOWN looks!

dude be real.

[edhe]

Which isn't a horror story.

Horror is all about pacing, immersion.

[free2game365]

Mafia had pacing and immersion, the city made the world felt more alive, along with it changing throughout the game. An overworld style that shows that overworld progressively getting worse would add a lot to immersion.

[Raoh]

I'm not worried about the sandbox change at all. tell you the truth, until the change was mentioned, i didn't even remember it was a sandbox game.

i'm more interested in the gameplay, story, graphics and music. story mainly.

i'm really hoping alan wake and heavy rain are both huge hits. this will hopefully usher in a new wave of adult games. (adult/mature content, themes, story, characters etc)

[IronFistChinMi]

I'm in the same boat, I completely forgot about the sandbox style. I do believe their reasons for dropping it though and hopefully it will turn out to be a great game.

[free2game365]

heavy rain would be better if the the people making it could write their way out of a paper bag and the gameplay wasn't based around quick time events, those things suck

[devilhunterx]

Alan in the Dark.

xmen on damage control again.

[Shane Kim]

I can explain the decision too. The 360 sucks @ss so Remedy had no other choice but to gimp it.

[tha_meat_beater]

i guess the fact that it sucks @ss is also the reason why its such a sh!tty console

[-MD-]

Yeah high five bro! Right on!

[Natsu X FairyTail]

^^^^^^^

sony droids having an Orgy with eachother.

nothing new.

[-MD-]

Would you expect anything else? They gotta stick together and support each other.

[Vx_]

i have a feeling dat ur da same dude :|

[Natsu X FairyTail]

nah we aint the same guy.

[dustgavin]

Let's see what else they have to cut from the game. Perhaps the next route is to go with prerendered backgrounds.

[Ashriel]

Excactly. I'm glad not everyone here is a mindless sony fanboy ^^

[cmrbe]

just did now?

[Kushan]

Since none of us have actually played the game, none of us really know if the game will be better or worse of for it. Alan wake was always meant to be about the story, so if the devs themselves believe it's better without a few sandbox elements, then so be it. I don't care what they change, I'll judge the game when it gets released and if its a good game, I wont be upset that it's not the same game they proposed a few years ago.

[Foxgod]

This game will deliver, no matter what.
Resident evil isnt a sandbox game either, and that still owned.

Not every game needs sandboxing, and frankly, the whole sandboxing should remain to be used only in full fledged sandbox games, otherwise itl get very old.

[dustgavin]

Yea, who needs various options in an open world when you can force someone to go were you want them to!

[LostDjinn]

It's done now.
The game should be judged on it's merits when released. They've had a long time to work on it. I'm sure they feel the responsibility that comes with the games release.

If it's bad, fans'll have their pitchforks out for Remedy. They're smart enough to know that.

[Vx_]

that Xboters' comments are like diz : "Sandbox games aren't fun", "Sandbox not my cup of tea"..blabla ,
and day are all waiting for GTA-Tony da Gay DLC hahhaa FOooony if ya ask me

[XLiveGamer]

Well for this ignorant's the sandbox will take more space on Xbox360 discs.

[morganfell]

"Ignorance Reing in your brains"

Priceless self pwnage.

[Cajun Chicken]

Ah. This isn't the same game anymore now.

[Vx_]

we all saw how da game run on PC at Intel presntation it was so amazing and a huge open world with very beautiful graphics and the tornado part was the best. Sadly after we all saw how they changed the game at E3 due to xbox's limits, many pps have been let down
I'm overcome with grief :( cuz dat will affect da PC copy for sure!

[GiantEnemyCrab]

Please read the article. They said the change was based on story telling not because of tech limitations. If it "must be" then why don't you prove it? Since you are going to ignore what the dev's are telling you right in front of your face. You seem to know better than them so please enlighten us?

People seem to mix up SANDBOX and OPEN WORLD. There are still OPEN WORLD elements where you can explore, take alternate paths but you can't climb the mountain ranges in the distance which would be SANDBOX. This is a physiological/action horror game not Saints Row. Why would you want to take your car and crash it off cliffs and do mountain climbing?

I trust Remedy.

[Godmars290]

When it was first shown, the big deal was real time physics and drastic changes in light and day and the weather. If a tornado or storm ripped through town its effects were never suppose to be the same thing twice.

The games gone from that to a haunted junked microwave oven attacking you. Taking one path into a cabin that's already been wreaked.

[Henry Cain]

Anyone who says the 360 can't handle sandbox well just look at Fallout 3. Also this was one of the main reason I wanted this game. I think they made a big mistake to take this element out of the game.

[iHEARTboobs]

You mean that glitchy game? The game that I LOVED playing but can't anymore because it's freezing every 2 mins? That Fallout 3? But that's more of Bethesda's effup. Either way, it runs like poo on both consoles from what i've heard.

[Wolf873]

In a horror game, I think it's best that they keep open-world features to a minimum, otherwise I think it becomes difficult to manage and the fright factor decreases greatly if not incorporated well. I think what sells a really good horror game is that the feeling of firght, menace, and isolation, and they are better handled if we follow a linear story-line, but not so linear that we can't make choices throughout the game.

[SlumTheoRy]

Why do people keep saying this is cause of Xbox limitations? Didnt the article say that they cut out the sandbox style for story purposes?

Anyways, I can't wait to get this game. I have been waiting forever and now is really the time to stop waiting. I just hope this game does not flop because that would REALLY hurt Remedy.

[Rowsdower]

it becomes quite apparent that many of you are little brats who take themselves and their opinions way to seriously.

even the title "Remedy defends Alan Wake Changes", the folks at Remedy have been making good games for years and now they have to defend themselves from attacks on their own creative process. Remedy does not have to defend anything they do.

You know if your not interested in something fine, but to spend more time moaning about why you are not interested in a game, or acting like these developers owe you anything. Why not use that energy to talk about games you are interested in.

I really think some of you like whining on N4G more than you like gaming.

disagree away babies

[dustgavin]

Speaking of whining.....

[GiantEnemyCrab]

@19.1: And speaking of brats.. GTFO troll you aint foolin anybody here.

[Grandreaper9999]

There's a way to keep the player under check when trying to tell them a story. It's called limitations.

They could have it as open world and still tell the story IMO. Can't they make it so the players can't just dart off into the woods forever unchecked and at no risk? Just make the surrounding areas infested with enemies and limit ammo outside of the storyline path. In SH1 that worked quite well, you didn't want to wander around for TOO long in the town or else you'd be running into enemies, wasting precious ammo, and health drinks. Sure you'd come across items on benches/alleyways, but it still proved to be more harmful than good to wander around town ignoring the story, especially on harder difficulties.

Oh well, I don't work for Remedy hahahaha.. But like many here can agree, it WAS the game's major selling point. Linear gameplay in an open environment (woods, roads, hills as far as we know)? How do you do that and maintain a believable world at the same time? Surely they won't use invisible walls and impassable rows of trees to constrict the player's movement? I really hope they find another way, the game looked good at E3.

[Rowsdower]

was that the 360 and PC were getting an exclusive from Remedy,
because Remedy makes fun games with interesting stories and cool graphics.

[aaronisbla]

Please, lets not pretend that the open world aspect wasn't a rather nice selling point for this game. I remember lots of people being stoked that it looked so good and its open world. But now that it isn't, all of a sudden the open world aspect is just a mere afterthought to some.

Pfft, whatever.

That being said, i do think its gonna be an awesome game and i think Remedy can be trusted, if they say its for the better, then so be it

[BX81]

What in the hell does nerf mean??? Some people are real geek monsters!

[Vx_]

http://www.internetslang.co...

[RockmanII7]

game looks great but I will wait until reviews. low income, you see

[Obama]

Never forget that one of the bots' bragging point is that Alan Wake is a SANDBOX game. I don't know how many times I have heard the word sandbox coming out of their mouth.

[Obama]

No wonder GT nominated it to be one of the biggest disappointment in E3. May be they know something.

[Braid]

No matter what we gotta trust these guys, Remedy has a great history in gaming industry with Max Payne series. So we already have enough to trust their decisions. Besides, I think this change is quite logical. Sandbox games are mostly based on fun, and most of them lack complex stories. Even the good ones in this genre can not be compared with a linear game that has a great plot in terms of storyline. Although there are exceptions, I don't think a sandbox game can be an MGS4 or something. A game like a novel is always better in my understanding of a 'good' game, so let them change anything they want to strengthen the story. Alan Wake & Heavy Rain are the games that I can't wait to get my hands on in the future.

[EVILDEAD360]

There is ZERO reason for Remedy to defend anything. This is nothing new. The only people whining are about this are the same ones who never cared in the first place, but jump on the internet in a rage. It's just the usual haters from this site.

Developers change their games mid-stream or later all the time. What would have happened if Halo:Combat evolved was developed as a Real Time Strategy for PC, instead of the console FPS that we know today?

Look at games like Borderlands going cell shade or etc. Who knows what long development cycle do for games. What would Killzone 2 been like had it come out BEFORE Call of Duty 4, Halo 3, and Gears.

Only Realtime worlds know what is best for their title. If the sandbox elements made sense a couple of years ago, but made little sense later, then cut it. Besides we all know that the sandbox thing is getting a little stale as a selling point these days.

As long as Remedy doesnt announce they added QTE to the game, then I'll be fine. Guess we all got about 8 months to find out.

[LostDjinn]

"Developers change their games mid-stream or later all the time. What would have happened if Halo:Combat evolved was developed as a Real Time Strategy for PC, instead of the console FPS that we know today?"

Halo Wars? :P

Sorry. I had to do it.

[EVILDEAD360]

LOL @ Lost...plus Bubble for the laugh!

[The Judderman]

Im sure i recently read that parts of the map will be opened as you progress so by the end you can go everywhere, though there wont be much to do once ou have activated the story path. Anyone else heard this?

[The Judderman]

At this late stage its probable that the open world was in place but after playing it they realised it didn't work. shame but if it makes for a better game then thats ok,

[LinuxGuru]

lol I knew it! Man that sucks.

[Obama]

Disappointing Graphic - check
Not a Sandbox game - check
Protagonist have no personality - ???

[KingKionic]

Disappointing graphics?

It was runner for best graphics on ign.

http://games.ign.com/articl...

[devilhunterx]

ahem!

dis⋅ap⋅point⋅ing:

–adjective

failing to fulfill one's hopes or expectations

[PStu'rd]

The power of teh CELL would have handled it EASILY! Even though Heavy Rain ended up being a Adobe Shockwave nongame, possibly playable by watching it on youtube, Im positive CELL would have allowed an open world environment somehow olololol

Thanks Remedy, now convince Rocksh1t to do the same with Max payne3 and youll be a respectable developer once again. And give them your engine so MP3 can have CG like graphics too

[cmrbe]

I will give you a C+ for your efforts

[IWentBrokeForGaming]

it would take away from the story and focus. Just like how much you can d!<k around in GTA on the side. Although fun, it never did anything for me... all the side stuff was also more fun to do (in my opinion) than actually focusing on the actual story mode. Thus why I haven't EVER finished a single GTA game.

So Im glad this approach will keep you fully engaged in the game, just means the story and such... can be that much more fine tuned to be spectacular!

[IWentBrokeForGaming]

Im curious as to what you'd expect out of "sandbox side missions" in Alan Wake that would make it so good?

I'd love to drive my stationwagon to the grocery store and get groceries....

or better yet, run around throwing flairs at random people...

what could you possibly do as a sandbox title in a game like Alan Wake that would make any sense?

[Grandreaper9999]

Yeah you're right, the game is set primarily in the sticks right? I saw a gondola or something, a mill, a store, and roads and trees. What would it possibly have for side quests?

I think it's just that some people may have liked the idea of free roaming instead of being guided. Works for some games, not for others right?

[JHUX]

Just the thought of a huge creepy world your guy can free roam around and explore could immerse you into the story even more, and add more creepiness to it. And just because the GTA games did that to you, it doesn't do that to everyone. I for one have beaten every single GTA game and remember the stories quite well and enjoyed them a lot. I didn't disagree though.

[tehReaper]

Trolls are on a rampage today.

*sigh*

[Insomnia_84]

BD is not needed.

[Blue22]

Sandbox is overrated. Give me a good meaty story and make it affect me and immerse me. That's all I require.

[cmrbe]

There goes the Graphics are not good because its a sandbox excuse.

[DARK WITNESS]

who said the graphics are not good ? the usual people who's comments nobody cares about anyway...

[Thoreau]

was interested in playing a sandbox stephen king styled horror game. something definately was not working during production so the game has become more like an updated silent hill. i am not too excited about heavy rain, and reading the changes to Wake leaves me unsatisfied. guess speculation on Wakes gameplay is out of the question for me right now.

[Thoreau]

less is more.

[Arnon]

Terrible comment system.

[KingKionic]

I wonder if i lost brain cells here.

[sam2236]

Well that's off my list of games to get. It would've been very cool to play a sandbox-style horror game.

Damn you Remedy. :(

[JHUX]

Hell it may be a disappointment, but why would this keep you from at least giving the game a try? Something like this shouldn't stop you from enjoying what will be no doubt a good game (This is Remedy we are talking about here).

[pippoppow]

Now seems more like an Alone in the Dark which will not be such a bad thing if it is done very well but this was supposed to be an open world type game, so why isn't it. Now there is the question. May be due to DVD limitations as the PC version can be decompressed onto the hard drive which you can't do on a 360 thanks to a hard drive not being standard. Maybe they were prodded by MS to release early or maybe they wanted to do more than they could. Hmm. Nice when open world type games deviate from the GTA mold with totaly different themes. Maybe one day a Dev will come out with a horror/action/adventure open world game. Also would be nice to see an open world sci-fi game as well. One day , I hope.

[jlemdon]

Sandbox does take away from the story, how many of you guys actually finished GTA4??? I remember the developer talking about it being a sandbox story game. smh....

[JHUX]

I have finished every single GTA game, San Andreas being my favorite one and one of my favorite story's. I 100percented (found all hidden items, did all taxi missions, etc) on vice city, and came close with San Andreas. The only GTA games I didn't 100percent was GTA3 and GTA4 (but I did complete the story multiple times). Plus I have played all the prior gta games on ps1.

Gta4 story I thought was great, but overall the game was lacking, because once you beat the story there was nothing left to do like there was with all the previous GTA games.

San Andreas was by far the most massive of gta games and was sandbox style, and the story went just fine with it.

Kinda went on a little rant there, but I get kinda pushy when people always say "how many people actually beat the GTA games", cause they happen to be my favorite stories in games GTA 3 the mafia style, Vice city the Scarface story basically, then San Andreas the early 90s gangsta era, then GTA4 your just a badass russian.

[LinuxGuru]

This reminds me very much of Peter Molyneux and the original Fable fiasco...the open world and a lot of features were cut towards the end of development and it was turned into smaller-scale "areas".

It's sad to see devs over-promising and under-delivering, no matter what console they develop for.

[GiantEnemyCrab]

the delivery hasn't happened yet. You seem to already hate the game and you haven't even played it..

Go play the Max Payne series and tell me if Remedy delivers the goods or not. I trust them and if the Sand box wasn't working then I'm glad they had the integrity to stop and change it.

Like I said above there is SANDBOX and then Open World. I think AW will have open world elements where you can explore and take alternate paths, etc but you can't go 20 miles and climb the mountain range in the background which is more sandbox.

[spiky1228]

I was going to rebuy the XBOX360 for this game and now I guess there is no point anymore.

GEARS OF WAR III is not as interesting anymore.
HALO is just for the hardcore fans and yes there are alot of kids.

So I guess this is just another SIREN which is fine but i thought this game was suppose to show off XBOX360 technology.

[rjackson1]

We don't get the joke. Because frayer and spiky1228 are a retards or sony fanboys!You are probably the same kind of idiot that can't recognize ps3 is dead!

[Creep]

what a let down this was the reason i was expecting this game but damn MS has to always f**k everthing up i guess the 360 has reached it's limit i wish they would of left the pc version a sandbox game that would of let us pc ppl play it in all it's glory but they have to please the stupid trash that xbox is and that's not the only game that is being jepardize by this trash-box RAGE will also be toned down cuz of the trash-box i was ready 2 for alan wake with my new pc dual 295gtx's b**ch

[cmrbe]

of the sux box.

[NateDPG]

So now the game ain't that special anymore and just like other games of this type. 360 obviously couldn't carry it, oh well...

[kaveti6616]

I blame the Disc limitations. It's pretty obvious that the DVD9 is now starting to show that it won't be able to handle the kind of content that developers are trying to push. This disc limitation alone could force Microsoft to pull some crazy biz decision. All those beautiful landscapes are for nothing in my opinion. If you can't explore them then what the hell is the point? Next Generation, Blu-ray better be standard on the Xbox3. Imagine the look on the faces if during E3 2011 Microsoft says, "We're satisfied with the DVD9; we're going to stick with it." I know MS tried to maximize content storage by coming up with procedural synthesis (a special kind of data compression) but it's not going to work forever.

[air1]

you sony fanatics need to stop sippin that haterade...

now all the sudden all the sony fanatics was going to buy the 360 version but changed there mind because its not a sand box. you ppl are priceless..

typical sony actions like to talk smack to only get there as$ handed to them year after year..

[Sez]

Why even entertain them with a responce to their trolling. They are still upset the the PoS3 couldn't handle ghostbuster and it was the lead plat-form. Let alone handle a game like Alan wake. Beside they have anything until uncharted 2 comes out. No-ones playing/interested in KZ2 anymore. Infamous is a sales flop. What else do they have

[dustgavin]

How is Star Ocean and Race Pro treating ya? Plus, you get all that awesome DLC! That is way better than killer first party titles.

Have fun with Gay Tony and Milo.

[air1]

the 360 library has been treating me good since launch, it took sony what almost 2 years to get that limp d!ck up. a shame really considering they have more devs than micro and ninty combined. did you enjoy e3 when sony had 0 games to announce with a release date? i know when i will be playing coviction l4d2 shadow complex forza... and have fun with your dildo stick, dont forget ky is sold separate...

yea i know vega the greatest fps of all time couldnt hit 2 million. that game sucks donkey balls all it is is modern warfare with better graphics and we all know graphics dies quick just about as quick as it fell off the chart, ouch!

[akaFullMetal]

what ever makes the game better i suppose, but I wonder if the reason remedy stated is the real reason why they dropped the sand-box version???

[psiom]

To be honest, sandbox games piss me off.

[topdawg122]

Damn, that's dissapointing. I don't see why they can't make an open world game and still have a great story. That seems like a poor excuse, but whatever I'm sure it will still be good but not great.

[JHUX]

**Completely different types of games**, but San Andreas was a sandbox style game with a HUGE world, and I thought the story was amazing in that game (my favorite GTA of all).

[JHUX]

When I first saw the PC tech demos way back on this game I got pretty pumped for it, then it disappeared for a while, then the more I hear/see from it lately the less excited I am for it. Don't get me wrong though I still think it will be a good game, thats a no brainer with Remedy working on it, but I don't think it's going to be what it was hyped up to be (for me anyway, my opinion). Wont stop me from playing it when the time comes.

[volcane]

I don't see the fuss over Remedy Games, they have only made 3 games in all their history i.e.Death Rally, Max Payne and Max Payne 2 (where the Max Payne games are good), but that doesn't mean Alan Wake is going to be good, it could be another Haze all over again i.e. developer who made some good games (Timesplitter games), but then made a crap one and then look what happened to them.

Don't get me wrong, I hope it is a good game, but just because they have made good games in the past, doesn't mean that their next game will also be good.

[No Way]

Even without the addition of the sandbox implemented, I still think the game will be great.

[sam2236]

@JHUX: I'm not buying it nor am I going to try it as Remedy promised, for over THREE YEARS, that we would be getting an open-world survival horror game inspired by Silent Hill/Twin Peaks.

We're not getting that, so I'm not buying it. It's not just me either, lots of people were excited for a sandbox-style survival horror, so Remedy have probably lost others as well.

BTW, I'm not bashing Remedy either. I love the Max Payne games (And am waiting for MP3!), I just think it was a bad move to drop the sandbox gameplay.