Flashbangs are a form of weapon found in Alan Wake and Alan Wake's American Nightmare. In real life, they are used by military and police forces to stun and temporarily blind hostiles while breaching rooms.

In-Game Description

Nonlethal weapons? Not against the Taken. The bright flash of light instantly burns off their protective shadows, and the concussive blast rips them into shreds.

Characteristics

Flashbangs explode with a blinding flash of light that disintegrates Taken instantly. This is a single-use weapon that you can make the most of when surrounded by multiple Taken. Flashbangs occupy the same secondary slot as the Flare, and as such may not be used at the same time without switching weapons, although you can have both in your inventory at the same time.

Tactics

Flashbangs are similar to the Flare Gun in that its explosion instantaneously eradicates any Taken caught in its blast radius. However, it has a much larger blast radius, and does not create a temporary safe haven of light. It is often best to use a flashbang just before you are surrounded by enemies, as you will still be vulnerable to attack in the moments before it explodes. Since these are somewhat less common than the Flare, they should be saved for especially difficult or hectic battles.

In Alan Wake's American Nightmare, the flashbangs act differently, instead of instantly killing Taken they will destroy their shield and stun them especially in nightmare difficulty, using another flashbang will usually finish them off.

Trivia

• The way Alan uses flashbangs is extremely hazardous. In real life, flashbangs should not be handled that way for fear of suffering damage to the retinas or ears after prolonged use.
• Flashbangs are the only items Alan use that are atypical of gear usually used by hunters - Alan even comments on several occasions about how odd it was to be finding flashbangs so frequently presumed that for what to come after.
• These function like hand grenades in other video games; it takes out Taken with one shot, and can take out many in a group. However, flashbangs cannot hurt Alan, unlike ballistics in real life - they only cause a temporary blindness effect. This is due to the fact how Alan can resist light easier than he could before he arrived in Bright Falls.