Summary
Alan Wake 2poses an incredibly dense narrative and world-building with quirky characters, spooky environments, and metatextual devices throughout its single-player experience. While some of the cultural influences inAlan Wake 2are obvious, others are either hidden away in obscure locations or subtle enough that drawing a comparison isn’t exactly straightforward.
From genre-defining films to popular TV shows to Remedy Entertainment’s own publications, here are some of the best Easter eggs that might go unnoticed by many players on their first playthrough ofAlan Wake 2.
7Twin Peaks
Right off the bat, the influence ofTwin Peaksis undeniably prevalent inAlan Wake 2’s setting, the town of Bright Falls. If the coffee-loving FBI agents aren’t too much on the nose, then the one-to-one recreation of Double R diner fromTwin Peaksto “Oh Deer” Diner inAlan Wake 2, down to the same mountains-scenery in the wallpaper used in both the diners, is definitely an obvious one. Then there’s the very conveniently named “Mirror Peak” mountain overlooking Cauldron Lake in Alan Wake 2, an ode to the “Twin Peaks” range from the hit TV series.
Though these references wereprevalent in the originalAlan Wakeback when it was released in 2010,Alan Wake2 turns it up a notch by corresponding toTwin Peaks: The Returnin particular. Just like Agent Dale Cooper’s evil Doppelganger, Mr. C,Alan Wake 2presents its own terrifying counterpart of Alan, who goes by the name of Mr. Scratch. The story beat of Alan being trapped in a dark alternate reality, The Dark Place, for 13 years is a good callback to Dale Cooper’s 25 years of waiting in a similar nightmare dimension, The Black Lodge.
To drive the point home,Alan Wake 2’s deluxe edition even includes the “Celebrity Suit” which is again a like-to-like comparison with Dale Cooper’s FBI attire, not that white shirts, black suits, and black ties aren’t uncommon, butRemedycertainly loved referencing a tv series that their creative director, Sam Lake, is a huge fan of. Speaking of in-game skins, fans of Alan Wake’s American Nightmare will be delighted to see the flannel shirt make a return inAlan Wake 2as well.
6Control
Including easter eggs and self-references to games from the same developers is fairly common practice, and withAlan Wake 2andControlbeing in the same connected universe, RCU, the developers must have enjoyed putting these hidden easter eggs throughoutAlan Wake 2.
Without spoiling much,the Federal Bureau of Control (FBC) plays a very active rolein the narrative ofAlan Wake 2where the enigmatic janitor, Ahti’s multiple appearances throughout the story, and the nursery rhymes research are just one of the many ways the FBC is monitoring the situation in Bright Falls. At the start of Chapter 3 of Saga in Watery, after interacting with elderly gentlemen who love to describe the benefits of the sauna, players can actually head inside the sauna and take a peek inside a metal bucket to see a familiar duck inside it. This is a reference to the same duck that players have to chase around as Jesse Faden inControlduring a side mission.
Similarly, later in the chapter when Saga heads to the Coffee World, players can find multiple pink flamingo cutouts, which are strikingly similar to the altered world item inControl, where players must cleanse it to obtain it as a collectible during one of the side missions in the game.
Finally, another callback to Control’s charismatic professor, Dr. Darling makes an appearance on the cover page of his book, which is found in Alan’s dressing room.
5Death Rally
Remedy Entertainment was put on the map thanks to the cult-classic status ofMax PayneandRockstar Gamesacting as publishers to bringRemedy’s vision to mainstream audiences. However,Max Paynewas still notRemedy’s first foray into video games, that title is held byDeath Rally, an arcade vehicular combat racing game released back in 1996. Regardless of how many players remember that game, the developers stillremember it fondly, because inAlan Wake 2, there is a glimpse of it.
In the Bright Falls area, players can enter Elderwood Palace Lodge as Saga. Heading to the corridor, the first room on the right, room 105, will have aDeath Rallyarcade cabinet in the corner. Sadly, players cannot interact with it, but its mere presence is a good Easter egg to how it all started with Remedy.
4Quantum Break
Early during Chapter 1 of Saga, players will be introduced to Bright Falls sheriff, Tim Breaker. The name is aplay on the words time breaker, sharing the sheriff’s likeness to the protagonist ofQuantum Break, where both characters are played by actor Shawn Ashmore. There are other connections that players can make as they progress further into the story.
However, one scene that stands out is the synchronized coffee drinking between the two FBI detectives, Saga Anderson and Alex Casey in one of the early cutscenes of chapter 2 ofAlan Wake 2. This scene is strikingly similar in framing to a movie trailer that players can uncover inQuantum Break. Interestingly enough, the trailer in question is an Easter egg of whatRemedymight have figuredAlan Wake 2would be like, back in 2016 atQuantum Break’s launch. The trailer inQuantum Breakis even titled “The Return” which is also the name of one of the manuscripts that is central to the story ofAlan Wake 2.
3The Shining
The titular Alan Wake is a fan of horror thriller stories and a lot of that comes down toRemedy’s admiration of Stephen King’s works likeThe Shiningamong others. The originalAlan Wake, apart from opening with a quote from Stephen King, included a recreation of the classic “Here’s Johnny” scene fromThe Shining,albeit with Alan being on the receiving end of an axe smashing through wood.
InAlan Wake 2, the references toThe Shiningare more subtle. After beginning Chapter 5 on Alan’s side, titled “Room 665”, players will notice that upon entering the Oceanview Hotel, the atmosphere and layout are eerily similar to the Overlook Hotel that Stanley Kubrick’sThe Shiningputs on screen. A more specific instance of an Easter egg is the one-to-one bathtub visual fromAlan Wake 2in room 101 with curtains halfway open, just like the terrifying scene fromThe Shining, although, thankfully there is no spooky naked lady here in the Oceanview Hotel,nor is the room number 237 as it was inThe Shining.
2Lego
This easter egg is a surprising one to incorporate given the tone ofAlan Wake 2but if anything, it adds to the quirkiness of the game. Once players set out into the hellish fictional New York setting during Alan’s second chapter, “Casey”, their first objective will be to make their way into Caldera St. Station.
Past the ticketing counter of the station, players will come across a stationary train with the code 9467. A very particular four-digit number, that upon googling, returns the same code for the Ghost TrainLegoset. Coincidence? Highly unlikely given the haunted landscape of The Dark Place that Alan finds himself in.
1Max Payne
Max Payne’s identity is closely attached to Remedy’s DNA for making dark stories with a touch of film noir to them. The influence and success of the series is one of the reasons why the company has plans to bring remakes ofthe originalMax Payneand its sequel to current-gen hardware.
For anyone who has played any amount ofAlan Wake 2, the character of Alex Casey, especially in Alan’s Dark Place is for all legal purposes, arecreation of the character of Max Paynedown to his leather jacket and philosophical inner monologs. The more “Echoes” that players discover inAlan Wake 2on Alan’s side of the story, the more striking the resemblance sparks between the characters of Alex Casey and Max Payne.
