Alan Wake 2 preload guide: release time, file size, and preorder

By Jesse Lennox Published October 20, 2023

It’s time to dust off your typewriter, fill up your thermoses with coffee, and dive into your mind palaces because Alan Wake 2 is ready to take us back into the dark and disturbing world of Bright Falls and the Dark Place. Fans have been eagerly awaiting the next chapter in the horror writer’s tale for over a decade, and the time to bring all the mysteries to light is nearly upon us. It is quite fitting that this more horror-centric sequel is hitting in the spooky month of October, and now we know precisely when you can join up with Alan and newcomer Saga to hopefully put an end to the evil forces at work. Aside from a flashlight and some fresh batteries, here are all the preload details you need to know for Alan Wake 2.

Alan Wake 2 release time

We'll be returning to Bright Falls soon. Alan Wake 2 launches in one week. Check your case board below for launch timings. 📝 #AlanWake pic.twitter.com/e1p4uAF1X4

— Alan Wake 2 (@alanwake) October 20, 2023

Alan Wake 2 will be released as early as 9 p.m. PT on October 26 and midnight on October 27 on the East Coast, and your local equivalent across the world. The above map shows all the major time zones for you.

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Alan Wake 2 file size

According to the PC requirements, Alan Wake 2 needs 90GB of free space, so the game should come in at just about that number. Console file sizes are still unclear, but should be in that same range, so be on the safe side and make sure you have at least 100GB free.

Alan Wake 2 preload options

If you want to get ahead of the game and preload Alan Wake 2 so you can start playing the moment it launches, preloading will become available on October 25, so just one day before the full release in some time zones.

Alan Wake 2 preorder details

If you want to preorder the digital-only Alan Wake 2, you can get either the standard edition with just the game, or the deluxe edition that comes with the expansion pass and some weapon skins and outfits.

Jesse Lennox has been a writer at Digital Trends for over four years and has no plans of stopping. He covers all things…

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Alan Wake 2 anniversary update helps you steamroll through enemies

Alan Wake stands in front of a movie theater in Alan Wake 2.

It's been almost one year since Alan Wake 2 released, and the developers at Remedy Entertainment are celebrating with a large update that makes the game more accessible thanks to options to greatly reduce the difficulty.

In a post published Monday, the studio announced a series of quality-of-life updates, along with more features in the Gameplay Assist menu. These assist options can help you to, if you so choose, reduce difficulty on combat to almost nothing. You can toggle on player invulnerability and player immortality, so that you'll never die. If you want to turn down the survival horror loot aspects, you can set it so you have infinite ammo and flashlight batteries. There's even a one-shot kill feature if you want to steamroll over enemies.

Gaming

Alan Wake 2’s next DLC is dropping next week, and it looks horrifying

Estevez shining a flashlight at a tall paint creature surrounded by smoke.

Alan Wake 2's second planned expansion is on the way, set to make the game more terrifying than ever. The Lake House DLC is dropping on October 22, bringing a new playable character and a new, but expected, setting if you played the base game.

Developer Remedy Entertainment showed off the first gameplay for The Lake House at the start of the October 2024 Xbox Partner Preview, and revealed a lot of details. First up, the DLC takes place in, well, the Lake House. This is a Federal Bureau of Control (FBC) research station set up on Cauldron Lake, the mysterious, ocean-like center of the Alan Wake series. We knew from Alan Wake 2 that something happened at the Lake House off-screen, leading to Agent Estevez teaming up with Saga Anderson and Alex Casey in the later half of the game. Lead writer Clay Murphy said in an Xbox Wire blog that by the time Saga and Estevez meet up in the game, "the story of this expansion has already occurred."

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Dragon Age: The Veilguard preload guide: release time, file size, and preorder

Varric and Harding in Dragon Age: The Veilguard

It's almost time to return to the world of Thedas, but there's still some time yet before we can get our hands on Dragon Age: The Veilguard. This game has been in the works for years, undergoing many changes, but is finally arriving on Halloween. We're all excited to create our own Rook and dive back into the story with new and familiar faces. If you've been waiting as long as we have, every second counts, and the last thing you want is to sit at your PC or console waiting for the game to download. We want to help you get right to the fantasy goodness by telling you all the preload details you need for Dragon Age: The Veilguard.
Dragon Age: The Veilguard release time

Dragon Age: The Veilguard will launch 9 a.m. PT/noon ET on October 31. You can reference the above map to see your specific time zone.
Dragon Age: The Veilguard file size
The only storefront listing a file size as of now is Steam, which suggests players have at least 100GB of storage space. We imagine consoles will need slightly less, but aim to have at least that much on all platforms just to be safe.
Dragon Age: The Veilguard preload options