Alan Wake 2: How to save game manually

Remedy Entertainment's games have always defied the traditional norms of the genre it occupies, and that stands true for its latest survival-horror title, Alan Wake 2. Despite being a survival-horror title, it features plenty of gameplay and storytelling systems that haven't been seen in the horror genre.

Taking inspiration from games like Silent Hill, the original Resident Evil, and even Remedy's very own cult classics, Alan Wake 2 delivers a cerebral experience. Even the ability to save your progress manually ties into the game's meta-narrative and character arcs.

Unlike other survival-horror games, you won't get multiple checkpoints in Remedy's latest title. The game only doles out a handful of them throughout the story, often limited to one per chapter. Here's a comprehensive guide on how to manually save your progress in Alan Wake 2.

Note: This article contains minor story spoilers.

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How to save your progress manually in Alan Wake 2

You can't save your progress manually until you finish the prologue and first chapter of Alan Wake 2. After completing the murder case of the missing police officer Nightingale and facing the Dark Presence head-on, Saga and her partner Alex Casey head back to the Forest to gather more clues about the Cult of the Tree.

As you make your way through the Forest, you will reach the "Witch's Hut," the first checkpoint where you will be able to save your game manually. Throughout the story, there are a number of such checkpoints that you will come across as both Saga and Alan, where you can save your progress.

As a nice little homage to the original game as well as Remedy's love of coffee, the item that you need to interact with to save your progress is an "Oh Deer Diner" thermos. At these checkpoints, you will get two options: either to "quicksave" your progress or do a manual save. Quick saving is faster, but it's temporary and will be replaced by autosave files.

The manual saves are permanent and can only be removed if you delete or overwrite them. The checkpoints in Alan Wake 2 are quite scarce, potentially to discourage "save-scumming," which admittedly can dampen the horror factor as well as the impact of certain enemy encounters in a survival-horror experience.

The progression checkpoints also serve as a safe haven within Bright Falls for Alan and Saga. These checkpoints also serve as a marker on the map, which comes really handy when exploring Bright Falls, New York, and the Forest in search of the game's many collectibles.