South of Midnightis a story where pain manifests as a real threat to the world, drawing inspiration from the folklore of the American Deep South. All of its trappings, from the wider story to tales of tragedy, and the overlap of supernatural forces in a mundane world, make it comparable toAlan Wake.
It seems slightly hard to believe at first glance that there could be much in common.Alan Wake’s tone is dark and deeply psychological, far removed from the colorful action platformerSouth of Midnight. But ifAlan Wakehas taught its fans anything over the years, it’s that looks can be deceiving, and anyone who enjoyed the series for how it portrayed complex narratives of personal tragedy may want to check outSouth of Midnight.
Fans of Alan Wake Should Try South of Midnight
On the surface,South of MidnightandAlan Wakeseem like a strange comparison. They’re both set in opposite corners of the US, with very different tones and artistic quirks, and the gameplay could not be more different. Someone who prefersAlan Wake’s gritty presentationmight have a hard time believing this game could be for them, but there are a surprising number of similarities.
It’s not likeAlan Wakefans are unused to changes in genre. When the sequel came out in 2023, it pivoted the series to focus on immediate action, exchanging the slower puzzle-oriented formula for a gameplay loop that emphasized Saga and Alan’s vulnerability.Alan Wake 2’s survival-horror genre shiftwas received very well by most fans, who felt it complemented the desperation of the main characters.
Many fans ofAlan Wakeare also fans ofPsychonauts, which takes a playful platforming style and sends players into the twisted landscapes of people’s minds. It is a similar kind of departure inSouth of Midnight, but each new biome provides a more metaphorical reflection thanPsychonauts. The varied landscapes inSouth of Midnightperfectly frame each tale of loss it tells, a backdrop that can go from triumphant hills to murky bogs.
The Steaming Bayou Holds up a Mirror to the Wilderness of Washington
While the genres may be different, it’s the landscapes that provide a background for each story, andSouth of Midnight’s steaming bayou environmentshares much in common with Cauldron Lake. The woods teem with wildlife and other more unsavory creatures touched by darkness, and tales of folklore are made real.
Both games frame water as a destructive force, whether itsCauldron Lake making creations real, or the storm that rolls through Prospero sowing chaos. Something that should be a source of life and vitality is flipped on its head, presenting an uncaring face that places obstacles in both Alan and Hazel’s way, and both characters are driven to find someone they lost to the adversarial waters. The world seeks to isolate the characters from wider society, plunging them into unfamiliar territory where the expectations of ordinary life are thrown out the window.
There Is a Large Emphasis on Stories and Memories in South of Midnight
One of the things fans seem to love so much is themeta-narrative elements inAlan Wake, as Alan has to write himself out of situations and routinely gets amnesia, forced to put his own story back together.South of Midnightplays with this a little too, as the game is presented as a story read by Catfish, but rather than rewriting it, it pulls from local folk tales to turn a story about a girl finding her mother into a fantasy.
There is a great emphasis on how personal tragedy bleeds into the world as a corrupting force. Terrible memories and ill deeds roll into one, creating monsters. There are a lot of parallels between the Dark Presence and stigma, the corrupting element inSouth of Midnight,which can be found anywhere where there is a lot of unresolved trauma. This coalesces as a physical knot of pain, not dissimilar to how the Taken’s suffering in their past lives causes them to be overwhelmed by darkness.
A Strong Cast of Characters in Both Games
South of Midnightleverages its fantastical bayou settingto write some larger-than-life characters, all with their roots in local mythology. Enormous fish, giant trees, or the slightly wacky residents of the swamps all have their own stories to tell, and it falls to Hazel to take the stigma she finds in the world and reweave it into something better.
Both games feature protagonists manipulated into carrying out deeds for other characters’ ends. Family dynamics pin down the narrative, and where Alan has to fight himself, Hazel has to battle her own disbelief at the world while being able to find her mother. Hazel herself is something of a bridge betweenSaga and Alan inAlan Wake 2, her nature as an independent person out to save her family mirroring Saga, while she reflects Alan’s ability to step into danger and reweave old wounds to advance the story.
In a similar vein to Alan’s story, there are questions about how much of her world is actually real, as Hazel is constantly caught between being distracted by the new fantasy she appears in and not losing sight of her goal. There are comparisons to be made withMr. Door and how he plays with Alan, but delving into those too much would spoil one of the best connections between the two games, which should really be experienced first-hand.
With a long wait untilAlan Wake 3andControl 2, fans of Remedy’s psychological storytelling should giveSouth of Midnighta go, and they might be pleasantly surprised. There’s a lot to love in how the game uses its cultural influences to tell authentic stories about the troubled folk, and the lighter tone might be a nice break from the shadowy shores of Cauldron Lake.
