Alan Wake 2 has players battling against the forces of darkness again 13 years after the events of the original Alan Wake. In the sequel, the titular writer is joined by new protagonist FBI Agent Saga Anderson, who, along with Alan, will acquire an arsenal of arms and other tools to assist in her efforts to solve the mystery of the gruesome cult killings and deal with the otherworldly threats assaulting the town of Bright Falls.
Alan Wake 2 is a full-on survival-horror title versus the first title's action-adventure, and as such, features a wholly new weapon upgrading system similar to Resident Evil and other adjacent games in the genre. This is a big change from the first title, as there was a range of weapons, none were upgradable, and often the game reset players' items and ammo between episodes. Those looking to add some additional firepower and other perks to Saga's standard-issue pistol in Alan Wake 2 will need to access a certain area and have enough of a specific resource.
How To Upgrade Saga's Weapons In Alan Wake 2
In order to upgrade weapons, players first need to enter Saga Anderson's mind place in Alan Wake 2, which can be accessed almost right at the beginning of the game, early in the chapter titled Return 1: Invitation. Once inside the mind place, there are a number of items that can be interacted with, such as the case board and profiling desk.
If players look along the side of the far wall, they will notice a wine bar and desk. Sitting on top of it is a pistol magazine manual. Interacting with the manual will bring up a menu for Saga's available upgrades.
All of them are technically available from the start, however, they need to be paid for with another resource found around the various locations and maps of the game. Players will also need to find and collect scattered manuscript fragments in order to redeem them for Saga's pistol upgrades. The fragments themselves are contained in Alex Casey's lunchboxes that are hidden throughout each area of the game, often tucked away in nooks and crannies, although a few can be easily spotted.
The three total options for Saga's sidearm upgrades are:
- Again And Again-- holding the fire button will activate auto-fire mode. Requires 18 fragments.
- More Bullets-- increases pistol capacity by 50%. Requires 12 fragments.
- Another Headshot-- extends stun duration against enemies if players score two quick headshots in a row. Requires 12 fragments.
Once players have enough manuscript fragments, they can return to Saga's mind place at almost any point to redeem them for the above upgrades. Doing so will allow players to gain an edge against Alan Wake 2' s menacing foes as they continue on Saga's investigation.
Alan Wake 2 is available for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.