HOLY SHIT ALAN WAKE IS GREAT I STAYED UP ALL NIGHT PLAYING IT.
RIGHT ALAN?
HOLY SHIT A PSYCHOLOGICAL THRILLER!
Okay I don't have the energy to keep this up. Game came in early at work, so I grabbed it and played through it. It took three nights of very steady playing, probably a fifteen hour game on Normal.
Overall very satisfied. Combat plays somewhat like Resident Evil 5 with perspective and flashlight instead of laser sight. The atmosphere was more exciting than RE5 though.
Story was also very good. Maybe not award winning, but a cut well above your average game. I even have the gall to say the writing is superior to my precious Mass Effect games. Great foreshadowing, great imagery, great characters. Many similarities to Heavy Rain, including the jerk-ass protagonist, though I'd say thoroughly superior (only thing Heavy Rain has is the branching storyline).
Since it's only good for one maybe two playthroughs, this probably isn't a must buy for many. But I do urge you to rent it and play it after Tuesday if you've got an xbox. It's easily worth that.
More official review will appear on Gamepad Dojo, someday!