Alan Wake 2 Delayed by 10 Days
In a recent post on X, Remedy Entertainment, announced that their upcoming sequel to Alan Wake would be delayed by 10 days- with October 27th 2023 being the new release. The reason for game delays often comes down to the developers needing more time with the project, or some glitches and bugs that need to be patched. Often, this can take months and even years. However, with a delay of only 10 days, its clear that development on Alan Wake 2 is wrapping, and there isn’t really any extra time needed. So, why did they delay the game?
Well, in the X post, Remedy stated the following:
“October is an amazing month for game launches and we hope this date shift gives more space for everyone to enjoy their favorite games.”
Essentially, this comes down to the developers wanting to push the game back slightly to give it more time in the spotlight. It’s a smart move- especially considering how many huge releases are coming throughout October. As it stands, we have Forza Motorsport, Lords of the Fallen, Assassins Creed: Mirage, and more to look forward to in the first couple weeks of October. Those are some hefty releases- but its what was coming after October 17th that likely caused Remedy to delay their game.
Image by Remedy Entertainment
On October 20th, both Spider-Man 2 and Super Mario: Wonder are launching. These are two huge first party releases from two of the biggest developers out there: Insomniac and Nintendo respectively. While Alan Wake has its fans, its still very much more of a niche game, and while its sequel is generating a lot of buzz, that’s not nearly enough to avoid being eclipsed by a new Spider-Man and Mario game. It’s smart, then, that Remedy have decided to have Alan Wake 2 release a week after these juggernauts. This will allow the sequel to get more coverage than it usually would and not be muffled by the larger games coming out.
Image by Remedy Entertainment
Insomniac have clearly learned their lesson from one of the developers with some of the most infamously bad timing: Guerilla Games. Responsible for the ‘Horizon’ series, both ‘Zero Dawn’ and ‘Forbidden West’ have released at some very unfortunate times- leading to both of them being eclipsed by much bigger games. In 2017, it was released just before ‘The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild’. In 2022, it was released days before the massive ‘Elden Ring’. This led to less coverage of the game and, more than likely, led to lower sales numbers as a result. With October 2023 being even more packed than these times, Remedy’s 10-day delay decision is not only a smart one- but also very necessary.
