The surprise announcement of Alan Wake 2 earlier this month has given fans plenty to think about in regards to where Remedy Entertainment is going to take the sequel. The original Alan Wake ended on a pretty open-ended cliffhanger, giving the studio the ability to take the titular writer's story just about anywhere. Wake's inclusion in Control's AWE DLC began giving shape to what his next appearance might be like, but the recent trailer for the sequel has made fans continue theorizing even further, dissecting all of the details within it.
One of the major details tucked away inside Alan Wake 2's trailer is a neon sign for the Oceanview Motel in the background of one of the vignettes. The Oceanview plays a major role in Control, and its appearance in the new Alan Wake trailer doesn't seem to be a coincidence given just how many details are jam-packed within it and its significance to Alan Wake. Given its prominence since Control, it seems as if the Oceanview Motel is going to further connect the two games and, with a little bit of theorizing, it might end up being what brings Wake back into the real world.
Understanding the Oceanview Motel
The Oceanview Motel is one of the most memorable locations featured in Control. While so much of the game is about high-intensity firefights and superpowers, the Oceanview is an area where Jesse goes and the scope of the game is reduced to a handful of ominous rooms and eerie puzzles. The Oceanview is a Threshold, a place of power that can see into other dimensions, and functions like a dream: it can't be entered or exited through any other way but by pulling a light switch cord. Despite its location in Butte, Montana, the motel is tied to the Oldest House but seems to have plenty of connections elsewhere as well.
The Oceanview's Connection to Alan Wake 2
Although it would seem like it could fit right in, the Oceanview doesn't make an appearance in the original Alan Wake, as it wasn't introduced until Control. However, Wake has a few connections to the motel that might make it a major part of Alan Wake 2. On a very superficial level, it seems as if the Oceanview can see Alan despite his captivity at the bottom of Cauldron Lake following the events of the first game. This, on some levels, makes a lot of sense given the fact that according to Wake at the end of the original game, "it's not a lake, it's an ocean." While it might be a little on the nose, the name of the motel, the "Oceanview," seems like it might be able to see and interact with Alan because he's stuck at the bottom of "an ocean."
This is made even more evident by the fact that Jesse sees Wake in the motel during the AWE DLC. Because that's the only place where she sees him directly, it seems to suggest that the Oceanview can literally view Wake who's in a metaphorical ocean. It's unclear what Wake sees on the other side, but given the Oceanview's existence as a motel in an urban area in the Alan Wake 2 trailer, it seems like the motel might be able to change shape when in other dimensions, like the one Alan is stuck in.
Light is a huge element in Alan Wake, and the fact that the Oceanview can only be accessed by pulling a light switch cord might suggest that the two are inherently tied. The game could feature moments where Alan needs to get inside the motel by finding an ominously placed light switch cord, or it might simply be what he needs to find in order to escape his dimension, enter the Oceanview, and return to the real world through the Oldest House. There are still plenty of questions about Alan Wake 2, but fans will need to wait a little while longer for answers, as Remedy has said it's planning to go dark for several months to work on the game.
Alan Wake 2 is in development.