It’s no secret that film has a substantial influence on modern big-budget videogames, and many of the most highly celebrated titles have gone to extreme lengths to replicate what’s found on the silver screen. For instance, in the final year of Red Dead Redemption 2’s development, its directors decided to add black bars to the top and bottom of cutscenes to emulate the aspect ratio of old westerns, a decision which led to significant crunch for those in charge of its cinematics. God of War (2018) and its sequel were entirely engineered around hiding load times so they could deliver their stories in a single unbroken shot, an aesthetic style pushed to the forefront of contemporary cinema by the long takes in movies like Children of Men or Birdman. In addition to these specific instances, there are countless examples of games recreating or referencing famous scenes from movies and TV, such as Grand Theft Auto IV’s Heat-inspired Liberty City Bank heist.
In a more general sense, games frequently use cutscenes to leverage the strengths of other visual mediums, removing player control so the authors can directly influence how the audience experiences the narrative. An often-cited criticism of this approach is that it undermines the whole distinguishing characteristic of videogames as a form: interactivity. However, beyond this argument, these sequences also often fall short because they lack visual flavor, and it’s rare for game cutscenes to feel nearly as well shot or edited as what’s found in rival mediums.
In many ways, this is perfectly understandable, as cinematics are only one part of the massive endeavor that goes into creating a game. Anyone who’s read about or taken a crack at development understands how complex this process is, as it involves a mountain of technical challenges that frequently require reinventing the wheel and an equal number of trials in game design, storytelling, art direction, and more. While cinematography and video editing are central elements in other mediums and are pursuits that people dedicate their entire lives to, they aren’t usually cited as top priorities when it comes to games.
But even if there are understandable reasons for this disparity, the increased focus on cinematic presentation in big-budget releases is still worthy of criticism because it accentuates these shortcomings. It often feels like these “prestige games” sacrifice the things that the medium uniquely excels at, such as ludonarrative storytelling and environmental design, to insecurely ape film and TV. It’s a situation that would be much less grating if these games were better at following through on these other forms’ strengths, such as the punchiness of a satisfying match cut or the suspense of an achingly methodical tracking shot.
Thankfully, we do occasionally get experiences that run counter to this trend and reach into a deep bag of cinematic tricks, such as one of this year’s most memorable titles, Alan Wake II. On its surface, the latest entry in the series seems just as, if not more, nakedly referential to the works that inspired it. Twin Peaks is an obvious influence on these games, and there is a long list of similarities: they’re both set in towns in the Pacific Northwest besieged by otherworldly presences, Alan Wake’s Dark Place is very similar to Twin Peak’s Black Lodge, Scratch is Bob, they star FBI agents investigating a string of murders, Wake’s novel Return is a reference to Twin Peaks: The Return in both name and content (a fact acknowledged by its director Sam Lake), and perhaps most importantly, they are each defined by an intense, underlying weirdness.
But despite mapping so directly to this point of inspiration, Alan Wake II finds its own identity. It escapes the shadow of its predecessor because it uses visual language that pointedly maps to its specific ideas and setting. Instead of just dropping references and copying imagery, its aesthetics bolster the particular turns of this narrative. Additionally, it takes big swings that largely connect during its cutscenes, resulting in a collection of bizarre and striking shots that, even when divorced from their meaning, feel worth the price of admission.
One of the game’s most successfully utilized cinematic tricks is double exposure. For those unfamiliar, double or multiple exposure is when a single piece of film is “exposed” to light numerous times (i.e., when a picture is taken), which essentially combines the sights captured during each exposure. If an exposure of a person is combined with a backdrop, it can make the person appear like a faded ghostly presence. Alan Wake II constantly incorporates a digital version of this effect, superimposing visages and distant locations over its environments to create a variety of upsetting images.
As Saga explores the woods around Cauldron Lake, haunting faces emerge from the darkness to greet her. When Wake discovers Echoes of Alex Casey delivering hardboiled monologues throughout the city, silhouettes combine with skylines to fully embody this eerie vision of New York. And on top of creating a variety of unsettling sights, double exposure is used to communicate how the Dark Place and our world are two different realms stacked on one another. As Saga approaches an Overlap or Wake reaches the end of a loop, faded renditions of a parallel location are superimposed on the surroundings, making for enchanting and ethereal vistas that connect both halves of this story.
A more immediately obvious way that Alan Wake II uses cinematic techniques is by heavily featuring live-action clips. Remedy has frequently incorporated a mixed media approach, and here, they utilize intentionally jarring cuts between film footage and CGI to portray the fractured state of this setting and its characters. Throughout, Wake dives into crackling tube TVs to access different facets of the Dark Place, suddenly catapulting into live-action sequences where he looks as disoriented as we feel. Sometimes, these are set in the middle of a stilted talk show interview, while at other points, we’re subject to frantic monologues as he’s consumed by the nightmarish confusion of working at his Writer’s Desk (honestly, relatable). These days, using FMV or live-action footage in videogames is frequently framed as a kitschy gag, but here, the off-putting contrast between these aesthetic presentations demonstrates the unhinged postmodern logic of this place and its alternate dimensions.
Combined with these bold choices are similarly attention-grabbing cinematography and editing decisions. At one point, Wake pulls the trigger on his creation, Detective Alex Casey. As Casey collapses, we follow his downward trajectory in an unbroken shot as the camera passes through the pavement, queasily pans up to simulate Casey’s final glimpse at the sky, and then pushes back down through the earth to Wake on the other side. On top of being visually arresting, the camera moving through the ground into what seems like a parallel world conveys how this dimension is composed of disparate pocket realities, and the gliding camerawork captures the flittering dream logic of it all. Additionally, as Wake struggles to break out of what he believes are “loops” and arrives back in the Writer’s Room, the camera slowly spins in a spiral, alluding to the true shape of this place while also reflecting the protagonist’s frazzled headspace. Throughout, we’re subject to constant smash cuts of disturbing monochromatic images, these flashes arriving when the Dark Presence attempts to spread its corrupting influence.
Top to bottom, Alan Wake II is one of the most visually impressive titles in ages. From a technical perspective, it’s a powerhouse that Digital Foundry described as “the best-looking game released so far this generation.” Whether it’s the expressive character facial animations or how sunbeams peek through densely packed foliage surrounding Cauldron Lake, this is undoubtedly a graphical showcase that will push machines to their limits for some time. But more than just sheer technical fidelity, what makes this experience truly earn its “cinematic” moniker are its purposeful artistic decisions.
Its environmental design is defined by striking imagery, like when vivid crimson lighting accentuates the gaping maw of Overlaps or how sightlines subtly guide the player toward picturesque views of nature. As you move through this space, spectral visages and glimpses of distant places elegantly allude to the true nature of this setting. And while in numerous other games it can be grating to be torn away from interactive elements and thrown into placidly shot cutscenes, the sharp editing and dreamy camerawork used here left me anticipating these stretches as much as its survival horror thrills.
Many AAA titles seem ashamed to be a videogame but also don’t excel at being genuinely cinematic either. By contrast, Alan Wake II delights in both these worlds, and much like how it communicates the dichotomy between the Dark Place and our dimension, it dances between the digital and celluloid. By utilizing a deep well of filmmaking techniques alongside strong environmental design and technical chops, it melts down and reshapes a hodgepodge of influences into something singular and deeply weird. Countless big-budget titles have sought to emulate film, but this is a rare game that accomplishes this while still feeling comfortable in its own skin.
Elijah Gonzalez is an assistant TV Editor for Paste Magazine. In addition to watching the latest on the small screen, he also loves videogames, film, and creating large lists of media he’ll probably never actually get to. You can follow him on Twitter @eli_gonzalez11.