Remedy Entertainment has revealed that an Alan Wake 2 console performance mode will be included with the game, although it's not yet clear whether it'll hit a solid 60FPS throughout the game.
Speaking on X earlier today, Remedy communications director Thomas Puha said that Alan Wake 2 has been "built from the beginning as a 30fps experience".
Despite this, Puha says the team has "managed to include a solid performance mode" and that Remedy will be ready to share more information about that performance mode "later".
When asked by a fan whether Alan Wake 2 would achieve a solid 60FPS lock or simply target 60FPS for its performance mode, Puha said Remedy is "still tweaking that".
In a series of followup posts on X, Puha delved into a little more detail regarding the rationale behind the Alan Wake 2 console performance mode.
Puha says that "the word optimizing is being thrown around a bit carelessly these days", and that it's important for developers to "think of [their] frame-rate target from the beginning of development".
He goes on to say he'll try to find time to elaborate on this more, and that Alan Wake 2's Northlight engine "scales well", still looking "amazing" at lower resolutions.
According to Puha, one of the biggest challenges when it comes to the Alan Wake 2 performance mode is rendering the Pacific Northwest in a realistic sense.
Puha points to the "foliage, trees, {transparent objects), expensive lighting", and other features that make the Pacific Northwest "really challenging" from a framerate standpoint.
In any case, Alan Wake 2 won't constrain console players to 30FPS, it seems, so if you'd rather a smoother experience that trades visual fidelity for performance, you're in luck.
Alan Wake 2 launches on October 27th, having been slightly delayed from its original release date of October 17th.
As you might expect, the game is a sequel to the original Alan Wake, and as well as the titular writer, you'll also be playing as FBI agent Saga Anderson, who's attempting to unravel the mystery of Wake.
You can read our very own Andrew Otton's preview of Alan Wake 2 here, but suffice it to say that it looks like Remedy is giving horror fans plenty to be excited about.
