Alan Wake 2 was one of the year’s most anticipated releases, and popular titles tend to attract different publics that either just want to enjoy the story or are looking for some extra challenge on the way. For all of those, here’s a brief explanation of all difficulty settings in the game.
All Difficulty Settings in Alan Wake 2 Explained
Whenever you start a new game, you’ll be greeted with three different options for difficulty: Story, Normal, and Hard. They will only affect combat and have no effect on puzzles, so you’ll still have to solve those by yourself, regardless of the one you pick. While these options might be self-explanatory, here’s a deeper dive into what each of them does.
Story: Meant for those only willing to experience the main story. Combat is easier than ever, and most enemies will be defeated after a couple of shots. Shields are easily dismissed with a single glimpse of your flashlight.
Normal: The standard difficulty that offers a balanced challenge for veterans and newcomers alike. Enemies are resilient and won’t go down that easily, so keep your eyes open. You’ll often depend on your flashlight to remove their shields if you want to progress.
Hard: A tougher road awaits you with beefier enemies and bigger shields to remove. Be ready to rely on each and every item you find along the way, as enemies hit hard and will definitely give you some work before they’re finally defeated.
If you’re only here for the story or just want to be done with this game as soon as possible, don’t shy away from going with Story mode, as it trivializes most combat sections. On the other hand, Hard is perfect if you’re ready to suffer for a bit. If none of those ideas seems that appealing to you, just go with Normal, as it’s perfectly balanced for an enjoyable experience.
Remember that you can always change your choice by pausing the game (Start on controllers or ESC on Keyboard) and heading to Difficulty. Don’t be ashamed of going back to Normal if Hard ends up being too much of a hassle, or vice-versa if the game’s still too easy for your taste. But try not to be that caught up in combat or you might end up missing some possible collectibles along the way.
