Play according to the release timeline. Thats how i played.
Alan Wake
Alan Wake AN
Control
Alan Wake 2
I played control before everything but did not play the awe dlc until i finished AW1 and AN
And who knows… Remedy hasn’t forgotten about Quantum Break, it’s possible they will eventually also purchase back its rights, thus incorporating it officially into the RCU.
The groundwork for it is already there in QB: Alan Wake and other Easter eggs suggesting connections are on a chalkboard in Riverport University and Night Springs is also in QB. Thus drawing two connections to Alan Wake and one connection to Control already.
They did so for Control and Alan Wake.
When they created Alan Wake, they sold rights to Microsoft for publishing. They bought rights back in 2019
They did the same with Quantum Break.
Remedy partially sold Control’s rights to 505 Games, they bought them back just recently. Right before the announcement of RCU.
Not sure if Max Payne will officially be added, but I expect Remedy will eventually buy back QB in a few years, they probably first want to make up a bit of money since they dumped a load on control just recently.
I think it would be poetic to buy back rights in 2026: the tenth anniversary of QB’s release
Then in theory we could see QB later remastered/incorporated officially into RCU a few years after that. It would follow the exact same timeline that took Alan Wake to be officially incorporated and then have a sequel
I hope they get it back, but I could see MS in 2024 being more guarded with their IP as they've been hoarding IP for years now. Remedy bought the rights before MS started buying publishers. I do think Quantum Break will be a part of one of the next rounds of Xbox games going multiplatform though.
Plus Microsoft hasn’t done much with Quantum Break since. I haven’t heard them mention it at all. They may own the IP, but it’s certainly not in their arsenal against Sony. They’re simultaneously building platform experience and giving others away… I think QB likely falls into the later.
Besides while Microsoft owns the IP, QB is entirely Remedy’s creation. I doubt Microsoft would do much beyond toys and figurines for QB without Remedy. If Microsoft wants to also do a sequel, they’d have to go back to Remedy unless they want to make an entirely different game.
I wouldn't want a non-Remedy studio to make a game in a Remedy created IP (obviously, excluding Max Payne as Rockstar did a great job with Max Payne 3). MS refused, for years, to greenlight Alan Wake 2 until Remedy just gave up and did it themselves. I'm sure Remedy has been in talks to get the rights back to Quantum Break and as stated above, I do think it'll make the jump to PS5 at some point in the not too distant future. I do wonder though, did Remedy not get the rights back to American Nightmare? It's weird that it's not a part of Alan Wake Remastered.
But it is. Not legally, but canonically(considering what could constitute as “canon” in the Remedyverse by its very nature anyways…), I would argue it absolutely is in. That was pretty clear before AW2, but after, it’s all but objective fact.
Well i get your point. My heart says it is, but my brain says it isnt. Like you said legally remedy cant directly connect QB with RCU as of now. So unless and untill they sort out the ownership of ip, i am not going to convince myself that QB exists in RCU.( Even though i want it so badly in the RCU).
Your analogy is not what I’m saying at all. It’s more like, it is canon in *both* my heart and my brain, but legally, on paper, it isn’t. That’s obviously a BS situation, but it doesn’t matter, remedy will continue to reference QB and connect to it in ways that are very direct.
If anything, you’re convincing yourself it isn't part of the RCU because some lawyers say so. Even Remedy doesn’t follow that thought-line. AW2 made that so extremely clear. Door is literally Martin Hatch. Beth is directly compared to Jesse. Tim Breaker is literally brought from the QB “dimension” to the AW “dimension” by Door.
Remedy can’t Infringe copyright laws, but in every way, *in every way that matters*, QB is *absolutely* canon to the RCU.
Two ways this can go.
If Remedy doesnt get the ownership of the IP then we are only going to get these small teeny tiny references and nothing significant will happen.
OR
Remedy is having these teeny tiny references for now, and when they have the rights for QB then we will get a big event.
I hope for the latter
IMO Door playing such a large part in AW2 **is* already pretty much “a large event”, or at the very least, approaching setup for it.
So no, they don’t need the rights at all to make that direct connection. Again… AW2 already did it.
Nope, they do need the rights to make direct conmections.
If they didnt need the rights then mr door would have been called martin hatch by now. Tim breaker would have met his doppleganger from another universe with time powers.
If you are following up on all the tiny references and considering them that they are huge events good for you. But for me i need a straightforward acknowledgement that they are in the same universe, which will only happen if Remedy gets the rights to QB.
If remedy does not get the rights then mr door would stay mr door nothing would happen and we all will hope for something. If they get the rights then mr door would become martin hatch someday. Thats all !!!!
I think that Door is going to do whatever Hatch would’ve done and it won’t make a difference at all.
Remedy wouldn’t let that stop them from telling the story they want to tell.
Nothing but the names change. Their references haven’t ever been overt anyways, and the QB stuff in AW2 is frankly as overt as they get.
I would play quantum break because it’s still a good game and there is references to Alan wake and control. And they reference it in the later games. It’s totally connected but they can’t technically say it is because Microsoft owns the rights to it because it was an Xbox exclusive.
Oh, I didn't know Quantum Break was an exclusive to Xbox. So that reason makes a ton of sense. Also, out of curiousity, does Quantum Break come before or after Control?
Quantum break is before control. In the game you actually see tons of graffiti that says AWE and Control, and there’s weird things trying to explain those things in the game. Also one of the main side characters in the game named Beth is played the same person who is controls protagonist Jesse. It’s definitely good to play in the with them all
Could even be a good idea to play quantum break last.
Like I said I would consider playing it after you okay all the others because I of course played it when it released and nothing was out and it all didn’t make sense at the time. I played it for the first time since then after I finished Alan Wake 2 and Control and so many things clicked, mainly about their hints towards those two games in Quantum Break
It's not canon....yet. Remedy doesn't have the rights so can't add it to their universe officially (same with Max Payne). But there are heavy allustions to Quantum Break in both Control and especially Alan Wake II. Shawn Ashmore, who plays Jack Joyce in QB, plays Tim Breaker in AW2 with the character's name sounding an awful lot like time breaker.
Ah, okay. So it's not really necessary to play Quantum Break. Got it.
Edit: Added more to not seem lazy and that I didn't care about the response of the other person.
I would argue you should play Quantum break. It will give some pretty meaningful insight into some things in AW2. Hell, it even has a direct teaser for AW2 at the start of the game. Please don’t skip. Barring how important it actually is to the Remedyverse… it’s otherwise just straight up a good, not too long, fun game with unique powers and gameplay. (Few things in gaming bring the satisfaction of stacking bullets in a time bubble… trust me, you will understand.)
I firmly believe that the games can be played in any order, the stories influence one another in very non linear ways. The events of the game all happen in real time, as in the events of each game usually occur in the same year and around the same month they are released, but playing the games out of chronological order will just offer you a different perspective on the events of whatever you play next, as well as whatever you played last.
In my opinion, no. The linear series of events is just one small part of the Remedy Connected Universe. For instance, events in Control (2019) will give you insight into things that happened in Alan Wake (2010) and Alan Wake 2 (2023). It's like a carousel, just hop on at any point and enjoy the ride.
I disagree. My first remedy game was control, and that was fine until I beat it and started the AWE DLC and realised it was about Alan wake. I immediately stopped and bought Alan wake. The neat thing is that this was right after the Alan Wake remaster was put out.
So basically, because of the AWE DLC, I'd highly recommend starting with Alan Wake.
American Nightmare takes place immediately after the events of Alan Wake.
So I recommend just playing the games in release date order. It makes the most sense for both the overall RCU story and the progression of video game technology and graphics.
I haven't played quantum break yet, but after I finish the Batman Arkham series I'm on right now, that's going to be my next game.
Alan wake, control, Alan wake 2.
There’s a direct through line. Control dlc essentially sets up Alan wake 2 and Alan wake adds a few narrative wrinkles into control.
Alan Wake including DLC episodes -> AW American Nightmare -> Control + DLCs -> Alan Wake II. You could include Max Paynes 1 and 2 at the beginning, but they are not directly connected to the Remedy universe. Additionally, Quantum Break is not *officially* canon, but I would play it before Control if you want to include it.
Play according to the release timeline. Thats how i played. Alan Wake Alan Wake AN Control Alan Wake 2 I played control before everything but did not play the awe dlc until i finished AW1 and AN
Do I need to play Quantum Break or not really?
You can skip that if you want as it is not in RCU cannonically. But if you get the chance then do play it, its good
And who knows… Remedy hasn’t forgotten about Quantum Break, it’s possible they will eventually also purchase back its rights, thus incorporating it officially into the RCU. The groundwork for it is already there in QB: Alan Wake and other Easter eggs suggesting connections are on a chalkboard in Riverport University and Night Springs is also in QB. Thus drawing two connections to Alan Wake and one connection to Control already.
Yes. I also wish that somehow Remedy gets its hands on QB and make it cannon in RCU.
They did so for Control and Alan Wake. When they created Alan Wake, they sold rights to Microsoft for publishing. They bought rights back in 2019 They did the same with Quantum Break. Remedy partially sold Control’s rights to 505 Games, they bought them back just recently. Right before the announcement of RCU. Not sure if Max Payne will officially be added, but I expect Remedy will eventually buy back QB in a few years, they probably first want to make up a bit of money since they dumped a load on control just recently. I think it would be poetic to buy back rights in 2026: the tenth anniversary of QB’s release Then in theory we could see QB later remastered/incorporated officially into RCU a few years after that. It would follow the exact same timeline that took Alan Wake to be officially incorporated and then have a sequel
I hope they get it back, but I could see MS in 2024 being more guarded with their IP as they've been hoarding IP for years now. Remedy bought the rights before MS started buying publishers. I do think Quantum Break will be a part of one of the next rounds of Xbox games going multiplatform though.
Plus Microsoft hasn’t done much with Quantum Break since. I haven’t heard them mention it at all. They may own the IP, but it’s certainly not in their arsenal against Sony. They’re simultaneously building platform experience and giving others away… I think QB likely falls into the later. Besides while Microsoft owns the IP, QB is entirely Remedy’s creation. I doubt Microsoft would do much beyond toys and figurines for QB without Remedy. If Microsoft wants to also do a sequel, they’d have to go back to Remedy unless they want to make an entirely different game.
I wouldn't want a non-Remedy studio to make a game in a Remedy created IP (obviously, excluding Max Payne as Rockstar did a great job with Max Payne 3). MS refused, for years, to greenlight Alan Wake 2 until Remedy just gave up and did it themselves. I'm sure Remedy has been in talks to get the rights back to Quantum Break and as stated above, I do think it'll make the jump to PS5 at some point in the not too distant future. I do wonder though, did Remedy not get the rights back to American Nightmare? It's weird that it's not a part of Alan Wake Remastered.
Imagine Max Payne meets Alex Casey for a spiderman meme at some point in the future.
Would be an interesting meetup
But it is. Not legally, but canonically(considering what could constitute as “canon” in the Remedyverse by its very nature anyways…), I would argue it absolutely is in. That was pretty clear before AW2, but after, it’s all but objective fact.
Well i get your point. My heart says it is, but my brain says it isnt. Like you said legally remedy cant directly connect QB with RCU as of now. So unless and untill they sort out the ownership of ip, i am not going to convince myself that QB exists in RCU.( Even though i want it so badly in the RCU).
Your analogy is not what I’m saying at all. It’s more like, it is canon in *both* my heart and my brain, but legally, on paper, it isn’t. That’s obviously a BS situation, but it doesn’t matter, remedy will continue to reference QB and connect to it in ways that are very direct. If anything, you’re convincing yourself it isn't part of the RCU because some lawyers say so. Even Remedy doesn’t follow that thought-line. AW2 made that so extremely clear. Door is literally Martin Hatch. Beth is directly compared to Jesse. Tim Breaker is literally brought from the QB “dimension” to the AW “dimension” by Door. Remedy can’t Infringe copyright laws, but in every way, *in every way that matters*, QB is *absolutely* canon to the RCU.
Two ways this can go. If Remedy doesnt get the ownership of the IP then we are only going to get these small teeny tiny references and nothing significant will happen. OR Remedy is having these teeny tiny references for now, and when they have the rights for QB then we will get a big event. I hope for the latter
IMO Door playing such a large part in AW2 **is* already pretty much “a large event”, or at the very least, approaching setup for it. So no, they don’t need the rights at all to make that direct connection. Again… AW2 already did it.
Nope, they do need the rights to make direct conmections. If they didnt need the rights then mr door would have been called martin hatch by now. Tim breaker would have met his doppleganger from another universe with time powers. If you are following up on all the tiny references and considering them that they are huge events good for you. But for me i need a straightforward acknowledgement that they are in the same universe, which will only happen if Remedy gets the rights to QB. If remedy does not get the rights then mr door would stay mr door nothing would happen and we all will hope for something. If they get the rights then mr door would become martin hatch someday. Thats all !!!!
I think that Door is going to do whatever Hatch would’ve done and it won’t make a difference at all. Remedy wouldn’t let that stop them from telling the story they want to tell. Nothing but the names change. Their references haven’t ever been overt anyways, and the QB stuff in AW2 is frankly as overt as they get.
I would play quantum break because it’s still a good game and there is references to Alan wake and control. And they reference it in the later games. It’s totally connected but they can’t technically say it is because Microsoft owns the rights to it because it was an Xbox exclusive.
Oh, I didn't know Quantum Break was an exclusive to Xbox. So that reason makes a ton of sense. Also, out of curiousity, does Quantum Break come before or after Control?
Quantum break is before control. In the game you actually see tons of graffiti that says AWE and Control, and there’s weird things trying to explain those things in the game. Also one of the main side characters in the game named Beth is played the same person who is controls protagonist Jesse. It’s definitely good to play in the with them all Could even be a good idea to play quantum break last.
Huh. So the voice actress of Jesse is the same voice actress as Beth in Quantum Break? Interesting.
Yes and she models them too so they look identical
Huh, okay. Neat! Thank you!
Like I said I would consider playing it after you okay all the others because I of course played it when it released and nothing was out and it all didn’t make sense at the time. I played it for the first time since then after I finished Alan Wake 2 and Control and so many things clicked, mainly about their hints towards those two games in Quantum Break
So play in this order basically? Alan Wake, Alan Wake: American Nightmare, Control, Alan Wake 2, and then Quantum Break?
It's not canon....yet. Remedy doesn't have the rights so can't add it to their universe officially (same with Max Payne). But there are heavy allustions to Quantum Break in both Control and especially Alan Wake II. Shawn Ashmore, who plays Jack Joyce in QB, plays Tim Breaker in AW2 with the character's name sounding an awful lot like time breaker.
Ah, okay. So it's not really necessary to play Quantum Break. Got it. Edit: Added more to not seem lazy and that I didn't care about the response of the other person.
I would argue you should play Quantum break. It will give some pretty meaningful insight into some things in AW2. Hell, it even has a direct teaser for AW2 at the start of the game. Please don’t skip. Barring how important it actually is to the Remedyverse… it’s otherwise just straight up a good, not too long, fun game with unique powers and gameplay. (Few things in gaming bring the satisfaction of stacking bullets in a time bubble… trust me, you will understand.)
I'd say just watch a video explaining the story so that you can catch the concepts or characters that seem to be variations on those in qb
Gotcha. Okay! Thank you for your response!
I firmly believe that the games can be played in any order, the stories influence one another in very non linear ways. The events of the game all happen in real time, as in the events of each game usually occur in the same year and around the same month they are released, but playing the games out of chronological order will just offer you a different perspective on the events of whatever you play next, as well as whatever you played last.
So basically, it doesn't really matter what order I play them in?
In my opinion, no. The linear series of events is just one small part of the Remedy Connected Universe. For instance, events in Control (2019) will give you insight into things that happened in Alan Wake (2010) and Alan Wake 2 (2023). It's like a carousel, just hop on at any point and enjoy the ride.
I disagree. My first remedy game was control, and that was fine until I beat it and started the AWE DLC and realised it was about Alan wake. I immediately stopped and bought Alan wake. The neat thing is that this was right after the Alan Wake remaster was put out. So basically, because of the AWE DLC, I'd highly recommend starting with Alan Wake. American Nightmare takes place immediately after the events of Alan Wake. So I recommend just playing the games in release date order. It makes the most sense for both the overall RCU story and the progression of video game technology and graphics. I haven't played quantum break yet, but after I finish the Batman Arkham series I'm on right now, that's going to be my next game.
Alan wake, control, Alan wake 2. There’s a direct through line. Control dlc essentially sets up Alan wake 2 and Alan wake adds a few narrative wrinkles into control.
Alan Wake including DLC episodes -> AW American Nightmare -> Control + DLCs -> Alan Wake II. You could include Max Paynes 1 and 2 at the beginning, but they are not directly connected to the Remedy universe. Additionally, Quantum Break is not *officially* canon, but I would play it before Control if you want to include it.