It's not just your imagination; there really is something subtly watching you during certain parts of Alan Wake 2.
Remedy's latest is a full-blown survival horror packed with references to the studio's earlier work, as well as little details you might not notice until it's pointed out to you. One particularly unnerving example is the taxidermy owl mounted to the wall of the eponymous author's Writer's Room. As spotted by Twitter (now X) user shkegulka, and confirmed by yours truly, the owl is watching you when your back is turned.
As you can see in the video below, as soon as you turn your back to the owl, it'll turn to face you. I walked around in several directions and each time I turned to face the damn thing, it was staring directly at me, into my soul. I never noticed this until it was shared online, and now that I'm aware of it, I kind of really wish I wasn't.
Did you know that the owl in the Writer's Room watches Alan when he's not looking? 🦉Have fun sleeping tonight.#AlanWake2 pic.twitter.com/1wYz0ElMEGNovember 4, 2023
Interestingly, I went to Saga Anderson's Mind Place, the newcomer protagonist's equivalent to Alan's Writer's Room, and the Deer head mounted to the wall stayed put the whole time. Not that I'm complaining, mind, I was just expecting a similarly creepy situation in the Mind Place.
Alan Wake 2 launched on October 27 and, despite a bunch of bugs that Remedy has been patching out in the days since, the studio's fans, survival horror players, and folks new to the studio and genre are generally loving it. Our Alan Wake 2 review awarded it a coveted 5/5 stars and called it "an imaginative and truly ambitious sequel."
Stuck at the first big battle? Here's how to beat the Alan Wake 2 Nightingale boss fight.
