I spent some time with Alan Wake on my beastly [brag] PC rig (featuring dual Nvidia GeForce GTX 580 cards) last night, running this already pretty game on max settings. As you'd imagine, it looks sooo much better than the Xbox 360 original.
We already knew that Remedy knows their PC sh*t, but Alan Wake PC is a really pretty reminder. There's so much detail on every surface that I feel like I missed a lot my first time around. In fact, running at top settings, the cutscenes look crappy compared to the game graphics.
The game's lighting was already fantastic, but it really shines with all settings cranked. And in the dark, shadows are even more...shadowy. The enhanced light and darkness in the PC version somehow makes the game more scary, even if you've played through it before. Also scary, but in a different way: the high resolution product placement.
In our gallery below you'll see some comparison shots. Of course, the dull, blurry ones are the Xbox 360 screens. To really appreciate the PC version you'll need to see it in motion.
LAUNCH GALLERY (7 IMAGES)
Dale North is Destructoid's Editor-In-Chief, a founding editor, and specialist in Japanese gaming. An accomplished musician, Dale was reporting from Japan during the earthquakes of 2011. Luckily, he got the fuck out alive and is home in America now with his wife and beloved corgi, Einstein. Dale is also a co-founder of Destructoid's sister anime site
Japanator. Likes Corgis, Sega Saturn, PSP, iPhone, Photographic tools.
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Contest:
1:00 PM on 02.21.2012 | 
also, elektro needs glasses.
"whats the point of owning a xbox"
Considering just ONE of the two videocards in Dale's beastly rig costs twice as much as an entire Xbox 360, I'd say there's a pretty good reason right there.
(And yes, I know Dale's PC is overkill and the game would run just fine on a $500 setup. But still!)
Stop looking at the 420p shots in the article. Download the full rez. shots. Then picture it in motion ;)
If you still do not see a difference, get you to an ophthalmologist stat!
Good job, Remedy. You've earned my respect, and I don't even game on PCs.
Yup. Just the sharpness. And the lighting... And the resolution... And the textures.. and the physics.
MOAR LIKE PC GAMING MASTER RACE, EMIRATE!?
But seriously the one with the school bus scene shot shows the serious contrast but this is the difference between DX9c and DX10 rendering after all.
Cry harder.
PCs
Dev Pros
Superior hardware available
No middle man for updates
Dev Cons
Large amount of drivers and hardware types to support
User Pros
Games look better usually
Possible to get good deals on older games through digital distribution sometimes
User Cons
Hardware costs more for top end machine than a console
No used game market to buy from
Drivers and OS need to be updated by user to fix some issues
Consoles
Dev Pros
Standardized hardware for development
Dev Cons
Hardware is below cutting edge technology so limits AI and graphics
All updates must go through third party
User Pros
Consoles cost way less than most PC setups
All updates are done by console managers
Used game market to buy games from
User Cons
Console sometimes limits some content to games
Lower quality graphics vs PC
There done. :p
Cry less.
I game on PC because it's cheaper. It only seems more expensive if:
a) You forget that you use a computer for more than gaming- you're just putting the money you'd spend on a regular pc and console in one basket.
b) You don't get that games are way cheaper on PC. I probably save $200-$300 a year compared to if I'd bought the same games on console.
c) You forget that you're on your 3rd 360 and 2nd PS3. Oh, and that you bought two inferior systems instead of slapping a $150 video card in the PC you already have.
Granted, this doesn't apply to everyone- some people have Mac or laptops, for example. But even then, gaming on PC is a way better deal long term. Nevermind that you are getting a superior experience, and your games will run on your next 'system' and look even nicer.
You don't contradict exaggeration with more exaggeration.
Most people don't go and buy 3 Xboxes or 2 PS3s; that's just hyperbole.
The fact is that whether or not one is cheaper than the other depends completely on the habits of the person, and generalizations serve no argument.
I'm talking about the very high failure rate those two consoles have.
You're right, though, it depends on the person. All I'm saying is that for some people gaming on PC can actually be a much better deal. The assumption that gaming on PC is more expensive is flat out wrong.
"I'm talking about the very high failure rate those two consoles have."
Dude (girl?), remember that PC hardware has failure rates, too.
My guess is that the individual parts of a PC are more prone to failure than a whole console, and a potentially more costly to repair depending of the damage.
It's very dependent on the situation.
I agree that the idea that you need to spend enthusiast-levels of money just to play on a PC is pretty silly, though. It's an old stigma that doesn't go away.
I do not take my own advice. I have a pretty good PC and a 360. Alan Wake came with my 360 as a download but I never even tried it due to my large backlog (curse you Steam!). Now I have bought it again on the PC since it looks better. Now I will never go back to play the 360 version. If it was just a straight port I never would have bought it twice. Remedy gave me a better product so they got more of my money. Simple! :)
Stains
Seriously, can we at least wait for gaming to become an accepted artistic medium before we start hating on certain groups of it?
I see what you're saying... but a console has most of the same parts, they are just smooshed together. And the modular nature of a PC means that I only have to replace the part that goes bad, not the entire system.
You're right, though, PCs aren't immune to failures. I just get irritated when someone who has multiple consoles and/or has replaced them, and/or has a regular PC/Mac, acts like somehow I spent more money than them o_O
And I'm a dude, I just <3 Motoko. Actually, this is Cryotek, had to remake my account due to some website issues.
The benefit of paying to play game online and having a way to watch TV through a series of hoops rather than simply switching to my TV's tuner and the cable I already get.
@dtomek one thing that I always notice with non PC gamers is that they dont like PC gamers nerding out over PC games because it makes them feel like lesser gamers. Most of us PC gamers dont have £500 graphics cards. Does that make us lesser gamers than those who do?
Only console wars fanboys think like that
(e.g. you're not gonna get the waves to look identical and so forth)
I'm all for promoting that my PC will render any console into the ground and do so absolutely silently ;) . But then we should probably use some games, where the difference in fidelity is much more noticable.
Know what Sarah?
What's that Bill?
PC games are neat. So are console games. Talking about master race and all that flibbity jibbity takes away from the fact that we all enjoy video games in a variety of ways and that's pretty awesome.[/i]
I'M A MOMMA GRIZZLY!
I hope you get hit by a dump truck filled with aborted babies.