The Flare gun is a gun in Alan Wake and Alan Wake's American Nightmare. Normally, it is used for signaling purposes, but this small, red, snub-nosed pistol is used in the game to both stun and kill Taken with lethal efficiency.
In-Game Description
Ultimately, the sun is the best weapon against the Taken, but this is the next best thing: when a flare goes off, the merciless light tears Taken apart. Best used against groups of enemies.
Tactics
The Flare Gun is an extremely powerful, one shot weapon. When fired, the Flare Gun releases a single bright red flare that incinerates everything close to it on impact. It ignores the shield of darkness present on Taken and kills close ones instantaneously, while severely weakening any Taken further away from the blast radius. After the initial effect, the flare remains present for some time, temporarily giving Alan some breathing space to reload/recharge. Ammo for the Flare Gun is scarce in comparison to revolver ammo. One of the best enemies to use the flare gun on are the Taken Birds. When the flock starts to fly toward you, shoot a flare into it or dodge and then fire a flare at them. It modelled after Orion Flare Gun.
Trivia
- Barry Wheeler uses this weapon to save Alan's life during the level "Night Life in Bright Falls" as Alan exits the church.
