Alan Wake 2: The Lake House DLC review — Bubbling Cauldron

Wrapping up a game is bittersweet. While Alan Wake 2’s main narrative has been finished since last year, The Lake House is the final piece of DLC we’ll receive, marking the end of a game we’ve awaited for thirteen years. I loved Alan Wake 2, and grew to love it even more after taking the time to digest the choices Remedy made in designing it. Making such a finale impactful is important, but this isn’t exactly an ending.

I say that because The Lake House takes place in its own space before the events of Alan Wake 2. Agent Kierin Estevez is back, investigating a Federal Bureau of Control facility we see blocked off by a fence at Cauldron Lake later on. Estevez has the oh so important ID badge to get in, and before you know it, we’re inside trying to figure out what has happened to the staff, security, and management. I appreciate Remedy giving us separate content as DLC, allowing the main story to stand on its own without the need for a follow up, and creativity to flow in the DLC without the hindrance of needing to stick to the narrative. That said, I wouldn’t have minded something adding more to Alan Wake 2’s conclusion.

Agent Estevez is a fantastic choice for his chapter, not only as an established character, but the way they’ve chosen to use her. Just as the game does with Saga and Alan, Estevez narrates her chapter, giving an intriguing perspective on everything happening around her. Remedy is top notch at this kind of storytelling, so it’s not surprising they’ve nailed it yet again.

Once inside the facility, Estevez has to uncover a threshold level event. I believe this is what Jessie uncovers during the events of the Control AWE DLC, but it’s not directly stated here. The people in charge, Jules and Diana Marmont, have been conducting experiments on the lake and its, for lack of a better term, capabilities. As you would think, this was not a good idea, and a breach is again made that brings the bad into the outskirts of Bright Falls.

While some have spoken of the story in respect of AI and art and how it tells of the dangers of an artist losing what’s special, I can only partly confirm this. I see the symbolism, but I also have another perspective. There’s a clear theme of what happens when you let ambition get the better of you, and that tale is a harrowing one. Remedy has done a tremendous job injecting so much into a shorter chapter.

Behind Remedy’s narrative prowess is the bones of gameplay that work so well in this series. While Night Springs was much more goofy and out there in presentation, The Lake House is more Alan Wake 2. I’ve made comparisons to the Resident Evil remakes, and at the start of this section you actually have an enemy reminiscent of Mr. X – the Painted. At first, you don’t have the required weapon to deal with them, meaning you’ll have to turn and run anytime you hear them emerge from their canvas.

This chapter feels compact as it only runs about an hour and a half, but it’s chock full of lore and information. Littered on the desks are a ton of FBC reports and intel, along with computers with email trains just waiting for interested eyes. If you want to understand more about what’s going on, this is the best way. Some of these will even be narrated by Mr. Alan Wake himself, adding hints to the lead up to these events. There’s even a cameo here that will make you want to run back and play Control, lending credence to the connection and maybe even a little intrigue to the upcoming sequel.

Even as much as I like the gameplay and lore, one thing bugs me: vague passwords. The computers I mentioned earlier have these, and they’re not as easy to figure out as the passwords in Alan Wake 2. Remedy did try to make them stand out without holding your hand, but two of these computers are necessary to unlock so you can retrieve a key card and turn off a lockdown. I don’t mind the obtuse puzzles for extras, but not as much to move the chapter forward.

Atmosphere is something Remedy blows me away with, and The Lake House has that in spades. I’m reminded a lot of Control in this FBC facility, but with that Alan Wake 2 shine to it. The tense soundtrack lingers in the background, causing you to double take as you round corners… just in case. Every sound, every visual, all are polished and gives off the horror aura the team impressed us with in the main game.

Playing Alan Wake 2 was already great, with superb performance and fidelity modes. That’s been stepped up a notch on the PlayStation 5 Pro, where I played The Lake House. While the additional ray tracing and more is tempting, I played in performance mode, which is as smooth as butter. 60 fps is outstanding, and the image quality is clearly raised via PSSR. It’s nice to see a year old game get another boost, even when it’s already an example of graphical excellence.

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