How long is Alan Wake 2 - story, game, and 100% completion length

Alan Wake 2 puts you in the shoes of not just the titular character but also those of an FBI agent named Saga Anderson. Alan, the celebrated author, is back for all sorts of creepy and macabre incidents to start happening in Bright Falls. That leads Saga to investigate these disturbing occurrences. Naturally, you might want to know how long it takes to beat Alan Wake 2’s campaign.

Our Alan Wake 2 game length guide discusses how long it takes to beat Alan Wake 2, including how many hours you’ll spend if you just focus on the main story objectives, and how many hours you’ll spend if you complete every puzzle and find every collectibles. We enumerate the available chapters, with short blurbs on what you can expect from each arc.

[Ed. note: This guide includes light spoilers for Alan Wake 2.]

How long is Alan Wake 2 — story length Image: Remedy Entertainment/Epic Games Publishing via Polygon

If you focus solely on the key objectives in Alan Wake 2, you can beat the game in roughly 18 to 20 hours. To be clear, though, Alan Wake 2 features two fully playable protagonists, each with their own arc.

Saga’s arc takes place in Washington, in locations you’ll be familiar with if you played the first game, such as Bright Falls and Cauldron Lake. Her investigation leads you to collect evidence, decipher clues, and profile persons of interest. Alan’s arc, meanwhile, is all about trying to escape the Dark Place, which resembles a neo-noir New York City (Neo York, perhaps?), complete with crime detective themes. These two arcs also overlap, as we explain in the chapter list section.

How long is Alan Wake 2 — 100% completion length Image: Remedy Entertainment/Epic Games Publishing via Polygon

Alan Wake 2 features a ton of collectibles and puzzles. A 100% completion run of Alan Wake 2 will take you around 25 to 30 hours. You’ll discover different collectible types whether you’re playing as Saga or Alan. Here are some examples:

Alex Casey Lunchboxes (Saga) - Areas that lead to a lunchbox are marked with colorful decorations. The lunchboxes yield weapon upgrade materials. Cult Stashes (Saga) - These crates contain a lot of goodies, but you need to check for clues and solve math puzzles. Nursery Rhymes/Dolls (Saga) - The clues come from the lines in a rhyme and you have to place dolls in correct spots based on those clues. Manuscript Pages (Saga) - Alan reads these to Saga by way of a voiceover. Some are also integral to progression. Echoes (Alan) - As Alan, you have to merge light and shadow orbs, unlocking a scene that plays in the background. Words of Power (Alan) - Shining your flashlight at walls might reveal arrows that point to these glyphs, which grant perk points. Alan Wake 2 full chapter list Image: Remedy Entertainment/Epic Games Publishing via Polygon

Alan Wake 2 includes a mechanic that allows you to switch between Saga and Alan at certain points. Doing so allows you to experience the other character’s chapters, perhaps as a change of pace or scenery. You could also choose to switch back to the previous character if you want to continue their arc. As such, the story itself is not completely linear.

Likewise, some of these segments are certainly lengthier than others, since you’d have to explore entire areas. Others, meanwhile, are fairly short, as you only have to go to a location to check out some objects or cutscenes. The game starts with a prologue, and is divided among Return chapters and Invitation chapters.

Return chapters: The Cult Invitation Local Girl No Chance Old Gods Scratch Summoning Deerfest Come Home Invitation chapters: Late Night Casey Haunting We Sing Room 665 Return Masks Zane’s Film Gone