When it launched last October, Alan Wake 2 was noted as a superb follow-up to its cult Xbox 360 predecessor. Visually, it was something?? to behold. However, being quite a graphically demanding game meant people with older hardware were left out—until now.

Recently, Eurogamer was given exclusive access to an upcoming patch for Alan Wake 2 which aims to optimize the sequel for previous-gen graphics cards. Specifically, ?the update will put focus on making the game compatible with Nvidia GTX 10-series GPUs, powered by the Pascal architecture.

In a benchmark test, a Digital F?oundry video found that, once the patch starts rolling out on March 6, those with G?TX hardware should see some pretty significant upticks in performance.

It's not a cure-all, though

Currently, the likes of the GTX 1060 (which is the fourth most used GPU on Steam) don't support mesh shaders, something AW2 uses for better visual acuity. However, the new patch should fix ??this.

??The video above shows that framerates do increase, boosting overall performance by around 45?%, even up as much as 85% for the likes of the GTX 1080.

However, the aforementioned 1060 is still not entirely suitable for the game to run at a decent rate. W?hile Digital Foundry saw increases from 15 to 25 frames on average (thanks to the removal of mesh shaders) in dense areas, this still falls short of what most gamers expect these days, which is 30fps at the very minimum.

There also appear to be no optimizations for the AMD equivalent, the RX 580, a card that came out in 2017. Given that Team Red is no longer supporting this GPU, it's probably not in Remedy's best interests to make Alan Wake 2 compatible with this (and much older) hardware.

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Last year's Alan Wake 2 was a triumph, not only in the survival horror genre but in AAA gaming in general. Given the high praise, it's no wonder we declared it one of our favorite games of 2023. And for good reason, too.

As well as great reviews all around, the Alan Wake follow-up has also been selling well. According to developer Remedy Entertainment, the long-awaited sequel has sold 1.3 million units, as of February 2024. A post on the developer's website says it's the fastest-selling game the company has eve??r released "so f??ar."

Indeed, it's not been out for too long, so time will tell how big the game can get in terms of sales, especially once DLC hits. By comparison, Control has sold over four million units since it launched in 2019. However, AW2 has sold "over 50% m??ore copies and over three ti?mes more digital copies in its first two months" than that.

Awards, they keep a-comin'

On top of this, Remedy was proud to announce that Alan Wake 2 recen?tly received the DICE Award for "Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction." That's one more accolade to be thrown on the pile, right next to such wins as "Critics Choice Award" at Golden Joystick, "Best Direction" and "Best Narrative" at The Game Aw??ards 2023, as well as some others.

?S??elling 1.3 million units in just a couple of months is mighty impressive, even if you take into account the fact that the game was launched not long before the holidays.

Of course, we also need to consider that Alan Wake 2 is a digital-only release. Whether y?ou agreed with that decision or not, one can't help but wonder how many more could have been sold? by now if there was a physical copy available as well.

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Alan Wake 2 is not only a great horror game; it also looks pretty. While it's not always about what something looks like, a recent video really hammers? home just h?ow far graphics and graphical technology have come over the years.

In the most recent episode of Digital Foundry, we get an analysis of Alan Wake 2, with particular reference to its us?e of ray tracing (RT) and path tracing (PT). Side-by-side comparison??s really demonstrate just how effective algorithmic-based tweaks can improve the look of a video game.

For example, we can see that with?out ray tracing, small details are lost, such as sharp shadows, accurate reflections, and some general degradation in global illumination. We can then see that with RT and PT on, there's a noticeabl??e difference in visual acuity.

It's lacking in some areas, though

However, it's by no means perfect. The DF video is a little critical of Alan Wake 2's inability to use path tracing to it?s fullest. The analysis suggests that native global illumination i?s likely overstepping on any attempts for the PT tech to make improvements, which we see in certain reflections or lighting. It still looks great, but it seems clear that the game could make improvements to path tracing to make it more effective.

So why does all this matter? For many gamers, it's probably not too important whether a shadow has sharper clarity or windows reflect the condiments of a diner. However, for more graphical purists, especially those who are using top-end AMD or Nvidia hardware, many will want to get the most out of their system. Ray tracing, path tracing, and image upscaling AI are pretty much standard these days, and i??t's nice to see that extra bit of work go into making a game look incredible, especially when you consider the price of graphics cards.

The Digital Foundry video also gives some advice on how to optimize Alan Wake 2 to get the best frame rate, without losing too much of that graphical fidelity. While it se??ems as though Remedy Entertainment could always make it better, ?we get a nice idea of just how far things like RT and PT have advanced.

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While Alan Wake 2 can certainly fall under the horror category, it's hard to know whether the game will be scary or not. However, what w??e can say for certain is that ??there will be some additional content coming post-release, some of which will be free.

Director Sam Lake confirmed at EGX (in a Twitter post retweeted by Lake himself) that Alan Wake 2 will?? be getting some "free DLC dro??ps" which are said to be "pretty significant." At this stage, there's no information about what this new content will be.

However, in th?e short clip attached to the tweet, Lake goes on to say that the team will be able to go "more into detail pretty soon after the game is out," and that all this DLC "wil?l be free for everyone" who has the game.

A turn-up for the books

It also looks as though Alan Wake 2 will also get some? paid DLC. Again, not much is known about this yet. The sequel itself has yet to come out, but it's nice to know that there's more on the horizon.

It's been 13 years since the original installment came out on Xbox 360. While it may not have been much of? a horror game-changer, it cert?ainly left an impression on fans of the genre.

Now, with the second entry releasing on October 27, the long wait is finally nearly over. Also, if you're looking to get a new graphics card soon, you might be interested to learn that Alan Wake 2 is free with purchases of select Nvidia GPUs.

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Alan Wake 2 is almost upon us. After 13 years, fans will soon experience the sequel to the cult horror Xbox 360 hit. If you're excited about the game, would you be ??interested in a free copy? Let me rephrase: would you be interested in a free copy if you're already purchasing a new graphics card?

That's what Nvidia is currently offering, at least. If you're in the market for some current-gen graphical firepower, and you want some survival horror goodness to go with it, you can get Alan Wake 2 free with purchases of select GPUs.

According to the Nvidia website, you'll be eligible if you buy an RTX 4070, 4070 Ti, 4080, and 4090 (if you feel like splashing out). It's not just PCs, either. A laptop powered by the mobile versions of the 4070, 408?0, and 4090 graphics chips also qualify.

T's and C's apply

Nvidia is offering this bundle until November 13, so you have a couple of weeks after the game comes out to take advantage of it. Of course, not everyone can afford brand-new ha??rdware right now, but if you are looking to upgrade, this might be an enticing offer. Do check the site for full terms and conditions, though.

Alan Wake 2 is also one of the few games that features version 3.5 of Nvidia's DLSS upscaling tech. As such, it kind of makes sense tha??t Team Green would want to partner with developer Remedy Entertainment.

As for the game itself, we're fast approaching spooky season, so horror is going to be everywhere by the time Halloween rolls around. Fans of the original are no doubt looking forward to the much-anticipated sequel. Hell, even I'm keen to check it out, and I wasn't a huge fan of Alan Wake to begin with.

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I was barely curious, but now I'm wishlisting it

There was a lot to check out from yesterday's Summer Game Fest, and there's still a lot more to come. We'll be bringing details about what else has been showcased at this year's Geoff Keighley event, but there was definitely one thing of note for horror fans, and those who have been waiting for Alan Wake 2 will probably have already che?cked out the new gamep??lay trailer.

If you haven't, the new footage follows protagonist Saga Anderson, an FBI agent sent to investigate a series of murders in Bright Falls. The sequel takes place some 13 years after 2010's Alan Wake, and the? recent trailer shown at SGF gives a brief taste of what's to come. With a much creepier vibe than its predecessor, it's one that fans will probably be ??keeping an eye on. I now count myself among those people.

//youtu.be/2hm0AmdB9AM

The much darker atmosphere that it's got going for it immediately turned my head. I'll be honest with you. I was not a massive fan of Alan Wake. It was fine, but it just didn't pull me in the way it did with many other horror fans. Admittedly, it's been years since I played it, so maybe my memory of it is a bit hazy. I just remember it not leaving as big an impact on me ?as I'd hoped. The fact is, I wasn't paying too much attention to the sequel unt??il this gameplay footage emerged.

Perhaps it's obvious to say, but Alan Wake 2 looks like it's got a Resident Evil remake thing going for it. As a fan of this rejuvenation of Capcom's iconic series, AW2 definitely has a lot of appeal, even from this relatively short clip. It's too early to say, but I'm hoping the new installment will be somewhat broodier and atmospheric. It certainly looks a lot better, bu?t that's to be expected given the years that have elapsed since the first game. Where the OG release didn't really scare me, I'm hoping this follow-up will offer up much more of a "brown pants" scenario.

In short, I had little interest in AW2 before. Then I saw the Summer Game Fest trailer. Now I think it could b?e one of this year's most exciting survival horror games.

Alan Wake 2 launches O??ctober 17 on PS5, PC, and Xbox Se??ries X.

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Epic will work with both studios to publish their upcoming games

Today, Epic announced new publishing partnerships with two notable indie studios. Eyes Out an??d Spry Fox will both work with Epic for publishing their next, currently unrevealed games.

Eyes Out is the new studio co-founded by Spec Ops: The Line lead Cory Davis and Nine Inc??h Nails guitarist Robin Finck. The pai??r are currently working on their first game, an unannounced multiplatform "cosmic horror" game built in the Unreal Engine.

Spry Fox, meanwhile, is the studio behind the charming community sim Cozy Grove. Though that launched earlier this year, Spry Fox is now partnering with Epic to build its "most ambitious title to date." It will be multiplatform, with cross-play and cross-progression, and will be a non-violent, persistent m?ultiplayer game. In today's release, Spry Fox say??s its game will be designed to "encourage friendship and reduce loneliness in the world."

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=35nCCbXBhw8

"We entered the publishing space to support creators and teams of all sizes, pursuing games and experiences within different genres," said Hector Sanchez, head of Epic Games Publishing, in today's announcement. "The worlds Eyes Out and Spry Fox are creati??ng, and the teams themselves, are perfect examples of this. We want to serve them by giving them full ownership of their IPs and creative freedom with best-in-class financial terms and publishing support. We’re fortunate to be partnering with the best talent in the industry."

These are two very different studios making two pretty differen????t projects, but they both sound like pretty intriguing proposals. Hopefully we'll see more soon as they ramp up development with their new Epic deals in place.

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