The $1 Deal That Shaped Alan Wake’s Opening Scene
Its been more than thirteen years since Alan Wake was released, and within this time, the game has received a lot of praise for its storytelling, and gameplay. A part of that can be attributed to how the game was set-up, and now, just before the release of the next iteration of Alan Wake, we now have some interesting news on the starting of the game.
As it turns out, in an interview with Eurogamer, the creative director of Remedy, Sam Lake, expressed how much he wanted to start the game with a quote from Stephen King, as it perfectly aligns with the eerie and supernatural horror themes that the game had.
We know how important a first impression, and starting is for a game. It sets the tone for the whole game and gets players excited about what’s to come. The opening scene shows a mysterious journey through a mountain pass. As the protagonist, Alan Wake, narrates the scene, he shares a quote from Stephen King that perfectly captures the essence of horror.
The quote says: “Nightmares exist outside of logic, and there’s little fun to be had in explanations; they’re antithetical to the poetry of fear.” This quote is very powerful because it emphasizes on the importance of unanswered mysteries in horror. When we don’t know what’s going on, it’s scarier.
So, with something like this, a writer like Stephen would’ve charged a lot right? Well, turns out that he sold the rights for his quote to Remedy Entertainment for a mere $1.
Creating the original Alan Wake, I really, really desperately wanted a quote from him to start it off. It’s my understanding he wanted $1 for us to get the rights to use it. [It was] so very generous.
Sam Lake, Creative Director Remedy
The quote is also significant because it was written by Stephen King himself. King is one of the most famous horror authors in the world, so his words carry a lot of weight. The fact that he was willing to let Remedy use his quote for just $1 shows how much he supports the game and the horror genre in general.
Well, as with Alan Wake, we hope we get to see the same level of standard when AW2 arrives later this year. Till then, we ill make sure to keep you updated on all developments as new information becomes available.
