New Alan Wake not yet signed?

By Ellie Gibson Published 10 June, 2011

MS exec Phil Spencer reckons so.

Fancy a bit more Alan Wake action? You might have to wait a bit - Microsoft executive Phil Spencer reckons the next instalment has yet to find a publisher.

Spencer was speaking to Joystiq about reports of a new Alan Wake project. "I read that," he said. "I don't know that they've signed it with anybody."

The first Alan Wake game was released last year. According to Spencer it "didn't sell as well" as Microsoft would have liked. However, he added, "I'd love to work with Remedy again. We have ongoing conversations with them."

But are they about that new Alan offering? "I think the stuff they're doing now they wanted to... Incubate internally," he stated. "Like I said, I don't think they've signed it with anybody."

Just last month Remedy's head of franchise development, Osari Hakkinen, told Eurogamer that "more Wake is coming". However, he added, "This next Wake instalment will not be Alan Wake 2. And neither will it be DLC."

Hakkinen hinted that autumn 2011 would be a good guess when it came to a release date. If that's still the case, though, bit odd there's been so sign of the project at E3.

Picture of Ellie.

About Ellie Gibson

Since joining Eurogamer in the mid 2000s, Ellie has written about subjects as diverse as the fall of Gizmondo, the rise of Hollyoaks actresses in Red Alert games and the noise a bear makes under NSFW circumstances.

Read more articles from Ellie by visiting the Ellie Gibson archive page.

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Comments (39) Latest comment 12 months ago

Comments for this article are now closed, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • daz_john_smith #1 12 months ago

    Dead Space wasn't exactly a big seller either but the first game found an audience and created brand awareness. With good advertising and a strong sequel Dead Space 2 managed to double the sales of the original.

    It would help Microsoft have more exclusive titles if they didn't abandon Alan Wake so quickly.
    Edited by daz_john_smith at 10/06/11 @ 09:16

  • GuiltySpark #2 12 months ago

    Waited for the first game for 5 years. Not holding my breath for this one.

  • NorUraeus #3 12 months ago

    Maybe they should approach Sony and do a remastered version for the PS3, kinda like Ninja Gaiden Sigma. The flashlight mechanic of Alan Wake might work quite well with the PS Move, and my impression is also that the PS3 customer base is a bit older and thus more interested in something like Alan Wake as opposed to being as heavily into traditional shooters as the Xbox demographic.

  • Haunted_Tree #4 12 months ago

    I've got the remedy, Remedy, just port it over to the Move.

  • Dewin #5 12 months ago

    So a sequal/prequal/whatever of a 360 exclusive title is not being picked up by Microsoft? This guy doesn't know if the new game has been signed with anyone? Am i the only one who thinks that is kinda odd?

  • StonecoldMC #6 12 months ago

    What in the Hell are MS playing at?!

  • GuiltySpark #7 12 months ago

    "and my impression is also that the PS3 customer base is a bit older and thus more interested in something like Alan Wake as opposed to being as heavily into traditional shooters as the Xbox demographic. "

    My impression is that the demographic is exactly the same, people essentially picked red or blue and violently defended it.

  • Vin #8 12 months ago

    So selling over a million units is considered a failure. Amaze.

  • flaming.carrot #9 12 months ago

    Ouch. Seems like a rather public snub of Remedy from their former publishers. Shouldn't these kinds of comments be kept behind closed doors instead of being played out in public?

  • Syrette #10 12 months ago

    Yeah, forget them MS.

    Just put out more Kinect titles, that's what everyone wants.

    /sigh
    Edited by Syrette at 10/06/11 @ 10:07

  • dingo75 #11 12 months ago

    Will probably be a Facebook game then.

    Sucks to be in bed with the devil Remedy ain't it?

  • SpaceMidget75 Verified Senior Software Developer, Minerva Computer Services #12 12 months ago

    Yet more typical MS shortsightedness. First one didn't profit for us well enough so lets drop it.

    Dead Space and Uncharted both ended up with sequels that were much better than the originals and Alan Wake smacks of being a similar title.

    MS basically take the following stance:

    Refuse to allow prolonged development on 1st Party titles to make them look and play outstanding (Crackdown 2/Fable 3 etc)
    Shift all internal development to Kinect as they know most other publishers won't.
    Not bother with exclusives and just let multiplatform stuff do the work.

    The compete opposite of Sony & Nintendo. They don't realise that slowly but surely people are buying PS3s for the exclusives and the perception that the PS3 is more powerful (due to UC2 etc) eventually flows down to the more casual consumer.

    As a 360 owner and not a PS3 owner it's very frustrating.

  • GamesProgrammer Verified Games Team Programmer, Eutechnyx Ltd. #13 12 months ago

    erm, so theres a good chance if it finds a publisher it will be going multi format then, do MS care about having unique games outside of Kinect anymore?

  • Syrette #14 12 months ago

    I'm quite certain that I won't ever own another Microsoft console after the 360.

    They've alienated me, quite frankly. The future for gamers like myself on the console is almost dead. They seem to believe that the odd Halo/Gears sequel is enough for those of us wanting decent 'hardcore'/not Kinect games. It's not.

    On the other hand I can understand the amount of money and research that has gone into Kinect's development and marketing. I can also appreciate how successful it has been. I'd be amazed if the next MS console wasn't Kinect-only.

    End of the day MS are all about the $$$. I doubt they'll get much more off me.

  • telboy007 #15 12 months ago

    ^^^ Hilarious!

  • EmiliasHorse #16 12 months ago

    Loved Alan Wake. MS you are daft not to publish a sequel, do it and avoid losing yet another exclusive. Muppets

  • Subdominator #17 12 months ago

    If Remedy stick with Alan Wake they will go down with it. That franchise is burnt, nobody can revive it. If Microsoft had any hopes (remember how good their market analysis is with Kinect, they knew it would sell) they would at least release a PC version. But the truth is: Remedy took way too long and the game we ended up with was very far away from the open world game they promised. Gameplay was repetitive and the story was a complete mind f***. I enjoyed the first 2/3s of the game but it went downhill from the start. The engine is great, but it only runs at sub HD.

    The market said "Alan Wake sucks". So get over it, Remedy, and create something new. The failure of Alan Wake is not a failure of marketing, the game itself failed. Yes, it was released on the same day as Red Dead Redemption. But if Alan Wake was a better game than it would have sold better. And nobody knew RDR would be such a great deal. Everybody was surprised how well it performed.

  • StonecoldMC #18 12 months ago

    @Subdominator

    True, but Take Two advertised the Hell out of Red Dead, I didnt see one TV advert for Wake (I live in the UK).

  • Inmediasress #19 12 months ago

    Well I'm going to be hated for this but one of the reasons Alan wake didn't sell enough is that halfways trough M$ pulled plug on the PC version. The thing is that a lot of people expected it on the PC because it was advertised as something that would use new hardware features etc. Some people only upgraded their PCs for Alan Wake.
    Then M$ says some shit like it's best played on your couch and then it went to the gutter.
    I remember there was tremendous hype for the PC on this one not so much on consoles, I believe if they made the PC port it would have been a succes if for nothing else than because generally interesting gems like this usually sell well on PC.

    The negative shitstorm that followed the game afterwards probably didn't help the sales too much either. Althoguh as above someone mentioned it could also be Remedy's fault for promising much and then failling to deliver.
    Edited by Inmediasress at 10/06/11 @ 10:49

  • BuckEntropy #20 12 months ago

    Yeah and of course Sony just stands behind all their second party devs under-performers through thick and thin, forever?

    Keep it real!

  • alimokrane #21 12 months ago

    It's amazing how this Phil Spencer guy can ruin someone's day. Everytime he opens his mouth, it's a blow! First he says all first party titles coming from MS in the future will support Kinect somehow and now this news about Alan Wake which kills any possible hopes of a sequel.......I think I know now which console I will be getting next generation - It won't have a MS logo on it
    Edited by alimokrane at 10/06/11 @ 11:16

  • Monkeyspoon #22 12 months ago

    They should remake the first game for PS3 in HD (unlike the 360 version) and then make the second multiplatform.

  • matseffect #23 12 months ago

    Yea its not Microsofts fault at all for releasing it at the same time as Red Dead.

    E3 showed just how little first party development Microsoft do now and having Remedy continue to develop for them would not be a bad thing. Maybe EA or someone will pick it up and we will see it arrive on PC and PS3 too.

  • BuckEntropy #24 12 months ago

    *soooo wants to see Alan Wake remade on PS3*

    Like seriously people, I'll get a weeks supply of good humor out of that.

  • makeamazing #25 12 months ago

    Ah thats bad :( i really enjoyed AW, and its one of the few exclusive games that i have played on my Xbox. OK so it didnt sell as well as expected, but another run at the game (after spending all that time on the tech) is certainly worth a go, especially as MS seems to have dropped most AAA hardcore games 3rd parties these days.

    Oh well, lets hope someone else picks it up.

  • MaoZedong #26 12 months ago

    Post deleted at 09:40:08 17-12-2011

  • darkphoenix #27 12 months ago

    Another stupid move from MS.
    Everybody loved Alan Wake, except some shit reviewers ( you know who ) or those who believed their shit reviews.

  • Liquidoodle #28 12 months ago

    Alan Wake was a great game! If I had lots of money I would publish it, silly MS!

  • Fozzie_bear #29 12 months ago

    Or those who played it and thought it was shit.

  • arcam #30 12 months ago

    Just release the first one on PC already, most of the work has been done.

    At the very least you'll make some money to help pay for the sequel, or you might even have a big hit.

    It's a bit annoying how they haven't sold 'enough' copies but I'm still sitting here keen to buy it but unable to.

  • EmiliasHorse #31 12 months ago

    @arcam

    You can buy it if you get a 360...lots of people have and it's quite nice, go on spoil yourself.

  • Machiavellian #32 12 months ago

    I know hating on MS is the norm now but it appears that it's Remedy that is keeping things tight instead of MS. It appears that Remedy isn't ready to show what they are working on and probably want to get to a certain point before they come to MS for funding. It could also mean that Remedy wants to do their own thing and may seek another publisher. Either way, this looks like something on Remedy end than anything else.

  • IneptPercy #33 12 months ago

    I was waiting for the PC version and got bored and borrowed it off a friend, I will say I loved the game but had an unsettling feeling all the way of ' this would have looked amazing on my PC'.

    I liked the story and do hope more is to come.

  • miiiguel #34 12 months ago

    Yes, time to do like Bizarre, Remedy!

  • Bulbatron #35 12 months ago

    I love my horror games, but unfortunately I didn't enjoy Alan Wake in the end. I just felt that given how long it had been in development. we would be seeing something rather more special and unique than we actually got.

    I was immersed in the story and I thought the graphics were wonderful, but I just didn't enjoy playing it. I certainly find myself wondering whether it just got to the point where Microsoft just made Remedy release it 'as is', if you know what I mean.

    While I certainly wouldn't be sad if it never came back, obviously I realise it's quite a blow for those who fully enjoyed the game.

    And at the end of the day, I'd rather see more Alan Wake games than the possible incoming torrent of Kinect-only bilge.

  • the_mtfr #36 12 months ago

    Editor, check that Remedy fellow's name is Oskari not Osari.

    Hopefully he's hinting at a Windows release.

  • penhalion #37 12 months ago

    If this isn't the mother of all oversites as far as microsoft games is concerned then I don't know what is. Did they learn nothing from Sony's failure to secure rights to GTA. Thinking that people would simply stick with anything as long as it said the words first party in it's hype marketing.

    If no-one had secured Alan Wake 2 then Microsoft should have just walk up to Remedy whistling innocently, grabbed them by the wallet and yelled a victorious "YOOOIINNKKK"

  • Reihn #38 12 months ago

    Please please let there be a proper Alan Wake sequel. I loved it that game, bought it and will happily buy a copy of whatever comes next. Yay for atmosphere & creativity in gaming!

  • 43n1m4 #39 12 months ago

    I hope this just means MS waits for Remedy to present their new ideas.

    And it must've been painful to spent years developing a game and not being taken seriously by some reviewers.