Alan Wake 2 is being delayed by just over a week, and its developer is being pretty candid about the reasoning.
Earlier today, developer Remedy Entertainment announced Alan Wake 2's release date would be moving back from its initially planned October 17 release date, and will now launch on October 27. "October is an amazing month for game launches and we hope this date shift gives more space for everyone to enjoy their favorite games," a press release from the developer reads.
Remedy also thanked those looking forward to Alan Wake 2 for their patience. "We can’t wait to show you what everyone’s favorite novelist is up to in the Dark Place next week," the press release concludes, indicating that Alan Wake 2 fans are in for a treat with some sort of reveal pretty soon.
Remedy won't explicitly say it, but it seems that it's moving Alan Wake 2 out of the way of competitors like Marvel's Spider-Man 2 and Hexworks' Lords of the Fallen. That's to say nothing of Forza Motorsport, Assassin's Creed Mirage, Detective Pikachu Returns, Alone in the Dark, and Super Mario Bros Wonder, all of which are launching throughout October.
Alan Wake 2 would've been in direct competition with Spider-Man 2 and Super Mario Bros. Wonder, both of which launch on October 20, three days after the sequel's original release. With this delay, Remedy hopes it can move Alan Wake 2 out of the way of all the aforementioned heavy hitters, and the sequel's closest launch is now Alone in the Dark, which releases two days prior on October 25.
Alan Wake 2 isn't even the only game to move its release date around in October - Ubisoft just moved Assassin's Creed Mirage's release date forward by a week from October 12 to October 5.
You can read our full Alan Wake 2 preview to see what we made of Remedy's sequel when we played it for ourselves, as well as an interview with some of the key minds behind the new game.
Check out our new games 2023 guide for a look ahead at a complete slate of all the bigger releases towards the end of this year.