Alan Wake 2: The ultimate easter egg and secrets guide

6. Much of Alan Wake 2 was revealed in Quantum Break

It seems Alan's fate has been set in stone for a long time now. Even if the renowned author is trying to do everything in his power to avoid the nightmares of the Dark Place to this very date, his story was written on a blackboard in an alternate reality eight years ago.

Quantum Break is another fantastic game developed by Remedy Games that launched in 2016. A lot of time has passed ever since, but even then Quantum Break reveals almost all major aspects of Alan Wake 2. The story and gameplay mechanics of Remedy's most recent title are foreshadowed in a blackboard and a video (which are incredibly easy to miss) in Jack Joyce's time-breaking adventure. It wouldn't come as a surprise if, seven years from now, we re-play Alan's latest video game only to find it has hints towards a major upcoming Remedy project that hasn't been revealed yet.

7. There's a nod to Quantum Break's Jack Joyce

Shawn Ashmore is a famous Hollywood actor who brought Quantum Break's Jack Joyce to life. However, his work at Remedy didn't stop there as he now portrays Tim Breaker, a sheriff who aids Alan and Saga through their twisted adventure in Alan Wake 2. Aside from the fact that both characters look identical, they might be related even more than what we initially thought.

The name "Tim Breaker" could be alluding to the phrase "time breaker". It would make sense since Jack Joyce breaks the flow of time in the events of Quantum Break. Furthermore, one of Tim's notes on his board talk about having different identities in parallel worlds:

The phrases "Me, but not me" and "Others I know yet they are different" talk about how the same character can play different roles in Remedy's multiverse. Finally, the "red-headed woman" mentioned is also a clear nod to Jesse Faden, the main character from Control.

8. Altered World Events

Even with all the unknown horrors that lurk in The Dark Place, there's a sense of familiarity to that twisted dimension. Players may feel like they have seen some imagery and symbols before, such as the graffiti of the letters "AWE" scattered throughout different walls and billboards. Even if it's never explicitly stated in Alan Wake 2, "AWE" is an acronym used to abbreviate the term "Altered World Event". So how do we know that? You guessed it: because that explanation was given in Control more than four years ago.

9. Max Payne references

Out of every Remedy game developed so far, the one we've talked about the least is Max Payne. However, that's not to say there weren't references to one of Remedy's earliest projects in their latest title. Perhaps the most obvious one is Sam Lake recreating the infamous Max Payne face meme through multiple scenes in Alan Wake 2. However, it doesn't end there. There's another not-so-direct nod to Max Payne, and it's all thanks to a phrase present on many billboards on the Dark Place that reads: "It's a cold day in hell".

10. Thomas Zane diver suit

Thomas Zane is a very mysterious character who first made an appearance in the very first Alan Wake game. However, players never got to see his face on their initial journey to Cauldron Lake since he was always wearing a diver suit. Fortunately, things are different in the sequel as the poet's disguise is nowhere to be found. That allowed us to come to the shocking revelation that... Thomas and Alan Wake look exactly alike.

We're still not sure if both characters are one and the same (though, thanks to Ahti's dialogues, it appears to be the case). However, while we figure out what's really going on, you can see a picture of Thomas wearing his iconic diver suit in the Ocean View Hotel on Alan Wake 2. This is the only instance where you'll see this diver costume throughout the sequel, and it serves as a nice callback to how the character used to look in the first chapter of the saga.