There’s otherwise no special event surrounding Alan Wake’s release on Xbox Game Pass. It hasn’t even been officially confirmed by Xbox, though that will likely come in the next week. It just seems like Remedy wanted to celebrate the game’s 10th anniversary by making the game more accessible. Given the game’s age, there are certain to be a lot of Xbox gamers who haven’t given the psychological action thriller a try yet.
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Since Alan Wake’s release in 2010, it’s had a dedicated cult following. Unfortunately, Alan Wake didn’t prove to be a big enough success to warrant a sequel. Instead, Remedy shifted gears to make Quantum Break, despite already having a working prototype for Alan Wake 2. Yet Remedy’s love for Alan Wake remained clear, as the game continued to be referenced in each of the studio’s subsequent games.
In 2019, Remedy proved just how much it adored its Alan Wake property by buying the rights directly from Microsoft, a month before Control was released. Since then, Remedy hasn’t done anything with its newly acquired Alan Wake license, at least until now.
The action is sure to reinvigorate speculation that Remedy is now working on a true Alan Wake follow-up. The success of Control, the acquisition of Alan Wake’s rights, and the mystery surrounding Remedy’s next major project are the perfect storm for the rumor, and putting Alan Wake out on Game Pass will only feed the fire.
Regardless of whether Remedy is actually working on Alan Wake 2 or not, Alan Wake is certain to live on in whatever project Remedy takes on next. Control had what must be over a dozen direct references to Alan Wake hidden throughout the game. In fact, it’s near-certain that Alan Wake and Control take place in the same world. Quantum Break may fit in that world, too. So wherever Remedy goes next, Alan Wake will likely be looming in the game’s hidden spaces.
Alan Wake is available now on PC and Xbox One (via Xbox 360 backward compatibility).
MORE: Control: Here Are All the Alan Wake References
