Alan Wake

Ok here's my two cents on this;

Its probably easier to focus on this cheevo in a seperate playthrough to the others, so you're not wandering about looking for things and hamstrung by not being able to use a car for protection.

If you've played through the main campaign on nightmare you'll recognise the importance of being able to drop a flare and run - i made it through having to only fight 4-5 times and it helps you save flares which are quite scarce on this dlc. Save your flare gun ammo for the final boss as using the techniques described in the guides is pretty foolproof and, after all you wouldn't want to get that far only to die at the end!

Diner to Church:

This section is relatively straight forward, the playground can be a bit tricky so utilize the only flashbang if need be with a flare to make it up and round back to the main street, a useful tip when fighting the deer float and truck for the key is to stand up by the door close to the railing, at this angle the objects zip into the wall below you leaving you free to nail it without getting hit

Church to Sawmill:

Make use of the furnaces in the basement as even the big guys sucumb to their flashbang like explosions, this is the only point i'd advocate you to take your time and lure the taken onto primed doors. the trickiest part in this section is with the invisible taken as you have a long way to cover with infinite enemies, when you reach the tv and the mini cut scene, drop a flare and run straight through the forest, when you reach a Boom! spin round and ignitie it, this will annihilate any taken in your vicinity rinse and repeat untill you reach the light. The telegraph pole region is much the same, don't fight - run, hug the left wall and use the gap in the fence (where the alarm clock is) to speed up your crossing, drop flares if / when you get hit from behind. * The area before the telegraph poles with all the possesed words etc can be bypassed easily by hugging the right side, ignore book/birds or retreat to the bridge to deal with them to prevent releasing any more taken also resist the temptation to drop flares as you unleash a whole world of hurt * - Info courtesy of Skurkitty.

Sawmill - Apartment

Trickiest part in the scene imo, trying to cross the open area to the switch and back is a nightmare on foot; use a car, burn over flick the switch (dont forget to shine a light on the 'pump' to get a better shotgun) and cane it back, this way you shouldn't get hit by the monster trucks. The large warehouse it opens has about 10 taken which is too many to rush past. enter the warehouse, throw a flashbang if you still have it and retreat back oustide as all these enemies will have gone - this gives you more space to dodge. once these guys are toast its plain sailing to the end.

Hope this helps.

* Its been mentioned that if you run up too fast after destroying the boat at the end your game will freeze - goodbye achievement!! make sure you wait for the boat to completely disappear * - Baron Tanks

Update: I have added a helpful youtube video from my friend, Z3RO 37. His video is a nice complement to this guide so I am incuding it upon his request.

Alita360’s comment on one of the solutions here and many other videos and walkthroughs have helped me finally get this hard and annoying achievement, but I also have my own ideas about this, so I decided to write something to help other people who, like me, have almost broke their copies of Alan Wake to finish this DLC.

I had already noticed that some fights could be avoided, but in fact you can avoid many more and, when required, you can just run and drop a flare. If you exit a building, the scenery change makes all enemies disappear, so even more fights can be avoided. Additionally, when running away you can try to run backwards and shine some light at the enemies to make them stop following you, just make sure none are coming the other way. In fact, shining some light at the enemies is the key to avoid being hit, but try to not use your flashlight without releasing the button for a while, as this makes things harder.

Remember to always use a flare when required to survive, and use them wisely.

In addition, I recommend turning off the voice from the game and just turning subtitles on, as listening to the same things repeatedly can be very annoying.

Walkthrough:

After getting the gun and the flashlight, you will be attacked. Run towards the tougher enemy to the left (the one who breaks the door) and either kill him or try to stun him with your flashlight before running past him towards the exit to break the door open.

Run from the enemies, make sure you grab the flare gun and its ammunition (flare gun ammo - 2) until you reach the possessed cars section. There, go down to the left of the police car and close to the first light pole. The secret here is to run as fast as you can and flashlight the door.

In the hardware store pick up the items on the counter and move forward. Do not turn back when the enemies appear. Instead, run towards the exit door.

After some areas with no fight at all, you will see a park with many enemies and ravens. Just run just to the right of the big rock then up the stairs to the right. After you reach the top a heavy taken will attack, so dodge and go up the other stairs to the left and get to the light. Do NOT worry about the tools you left behind to the right of the stairs, as you will avoid most fights and you will get plenty of stuff later.

Cross the road and have another conversation with Zane. Enter the small alley, climb up, jump the fence, and move forward. Walk toward the stairs that lead you to the exit, sprinting after the taken appear. You do not need to fight them, just stun the guy in red who is on your way up the stairs and jump to the left side. The Taken will not follow you over.

When you enter the playground, you have two choices:

- Jump the over the tree log in front of you and stand close to the exit gate, waiting for the enemies (possessed objects) begin to attack while pointing your light to the gate. When the gate is possessed, you'll be able to use your flashlight to destroy it and leave.
- Walk to the TV with Allan and go a little bit past it, waiting for the possessed attack. Then run towards the log and fight there, under its protection.

I prefer the first option, as it is faster and very easy.

Kill the deerfest trailer by standing close to the rail. You will be safer if you a few steps down from stairs that lead to the church's door.

In the church basement, it is a good idea to use a shotgun all the time, or you can save it for the heavy taken if you want. Once there, wait for Alan to check the phone then, after turning around the corner, aim at the furnaces at the northern corner, where two taken are spawned. After that, keep walking along the left wall and try to continue on the left after you reach a corner. More taken will spawn in front and a heavy taken will come from the right (the path where you came from). Take this guy first as he is very dangerous (using the furnaces if possible). Go back to where you came from if necessary to make sure you kill them safely. Wait for your health bar to regenerate after you deal with a group of taken, as this part has a limited number of enemies.

Continue on the left and you should see a light in the ceiling to the north. Keep going left until you reach it. You will still have to deal with one heavy taken and few other guys, just make sure to avoid the heavy guy while he is charging by either dodging or stunning him with light.

As you come around some big rocks, after picking up some more tools, you’ll see a TV in a chair and a bunch of words beyond that. Use the word boom to get them and try to kill them as fast as you can. Then run to the boom and fireworks words and use them as needed. Keep to your left and, once you get to the train cart, create the tools but do not pick them up. Go into the train car and create the flare gun. Typically by this point Taken are coming in so leave it on the ground, back into the corner where you found it and fight. Once this calms down, pick up the flare gun and ammo then create and grab the flashbang. Move back out the side door, pick up any of the tools that are readily available but don’t waste time hunting for them, and sprint for the light. It is very important that you do not take too long in this area, as enemies do spawn from time to time.

The next couple of sections are easy with no enemies but be sure to create and pick up the flare gun in the train car to the left (as you face the TV) of TV Alan. When you are crossing the bridge, you will be attacked by flying books. Keep your light high and try not to hit the “bad” words on the far side. You will have to kill the flying books when you reach the bridge (attack them before they attack you for max efficiency) then move forward and keep walking to the right of the words. After you get a flare, more books will attack you. Do the same thing as before and, if needed, HOLD a flare (being careful to avoid creating enemies). After this second attack, just run toward the light and ignore the tools. You can get them after you reach the checkpoint without the danger of the flying books.

In the area with all the streetlights, running is better than fighting. Do not jump from the cliff, as this is very dangerous and even killed me once. Instead, go down through the left path, trying to dodge, use the streetlights and flares when needed (2-3 should be enough).

Now you will be in the area where you get to use the cars. Create your wheels and quickly drive to the left around the pile of logs to the light in the far corner. Watch out for the 4×4 as you come around the logs. Get near the light, hop out, and get into the light quickly. Once there, DO NOT hit the switch. When you do, you will lose the light and loose items in the field will be possessed and hurled at you. First, try to lure the trucks over so you can dissipate them with your flashlight. Be careful while doing this as Taken may spawn behind you. Jump back into the light if needed to heal. Once the trucks are gone, create and pick up the pump shotgun (for the ammo if you already have the pump). Create the red box for other supplies. Create a new set of wheels. Then, when you are ready, hit the switch. Jump in the wheels watching for the flying objects, then drive around the other end of the logs back to the door. Do not get out of the vehicle but instead drive into building running over as many taken as possible. At the far end hop out and with your back to the chain link fence (so you can only be attacked from one side) deal with any remaining infected.

After another memory, you will run into a trap. Just go back to kill the guy behind you and then keep the light on the other taken and carefully kill them all. You may want to use a flare gun to kill the other guys (just make sure you keep 3-4 for the boss), but it is not required.
After you get the big lantern flashlight, you will hear the chainsaw start up. One taken and a chainsaw guy will appear. Keep going and stick to your left. When you get to the corner, turn back and you will see the common taken coming towards you. Kill him and then the chainsaw guy will come. You can use a flare if you want just make sure you keep the light on him and use the shotgun.
Inside this warehouse area, there are a bunch of Taken and a bunch of barrels. As you make your first left the attack will start. In front of you will be a barrel. Shoot it and let the blasts whittle the enemies down some. You will still probably have to kill at least one Taken before you can advance. Repeat this the next time you see a barrel. By the time you reach Barry you should be safe. I could detect no exact repeat of the attack pattern so you just have to be alert.
The same is true for the fight upstairs. Create the redbox and collect supplies and just inside the door the next wave will be triggered. A couple will spawn at different times behind you so I found this to be a good place to drop a flare and get to the far corner. From here you can see barrels so fire away. Once you have cleared out the Taken up here, you are ready to drop down and create a bridge.
Once you get out, create the memory, create the bridge and the bridge switch. Knock the ramp down. When you hit the switch it will cause I pallet of wood to move near the ramp so you will need go move quickly to get on the pallet. Do not fall off. Ride the pallet and you will have to fight three Taken. I used a flare to buy some room to get off the pallet and kill the closest two with the shotgun. Then kill the third. You have one battle left and you want to repeat the “Fast and Furious” achievement.
When you enter Wake’s bedroom be sure to pick up the flare there. If you still have more that’s great but grab this one. Then be sure to get the one on the left just before you enter the living room. So now you’ve got several shots left for the flare gun (I had 8, which is the maximum you get on this DLC) and at least two flares. Enter the living room and talk to Zane.
As soon as you are able hold a flare close to the big TV (or shoot one with the flare gun, if you have plenty). Now, reload the flare gun if you used it and drop. I would recommend lighting a regular flare and dropping it right after you jump down. Move forward a little and shoot the TV again. Once again it will flee backwards to the end of this building. Reload your flare gun, decide if you need to light another flare, and advance on your prey. Now, use the third shot to cause the TV to flee out to the dock, reload, and pursue.
As you exit the building onto the dock there will be flares. Pick these up and advance. At a certain point, a boat will fall from the sky in front of you and your path back into the building will be blocked. Fire on the boat with the flare gun and/or drop flares near the boat. Even better if you still have flashbangs drop them on the boat or if you still have flare gun ammo fire at the boat again. Do not worry about the flying books as they will disappear if you destroy the boat. Keep moving forward throughout the fight and deal with the boat quickly. Once the boat disappears, stop and wait for the cutscene to start. The achievement did not pop for me until after the song completed (you can skip the song) and the credits started.
This guide used ideas and some words from Alita360’s comment and from the Gamers Transform guide (http://gamerstransform.com/2010/08/01/the-signal-run-on-sent...).

I recommend that you focus on getting the collectibles and this achievement on different runs because doing both together just makes it even harder (I died once on my first time after getting an alarm spot in the area with all the light poles, you get swarmed there.)

That isn't to say that you won't try to stay alive on your first run, but I found running through a second time took less than half the time my first run did and I knew what all the areas were like so it made it a lot easier.

Areas such as the light pole place and the train carriage area before it can be quite annoying if you take too long, so I recommend you just sprint through there while regularly checking your surroundings for taken (and take some out to keep yourself safer) , otherwise carefully use your flares to get through. Enemies will constantly attack you from all sides in both of those areas in particular so rushing through them is a much easier way of not dieing.

Save your flare gun ammo and only use them if you really need them. They can save your life if you get into a terrible situation. They are also the easiest way to get the boss achievement so if you can save some it will make it easier to get both in the same run, but I would prioritize this achievement over the other.

Lastly, play on normal to make this achievement easier. Normal may have been way too easy in the original game but I found the Signal to be much harder so you could decide to play on hard and expect a fair challenge but find that it is even harder than you expected.

I have just completed this (at last)

You can avoid most encounters but sometimes it is a good idea to fight. I found I was never short of supplies.Use the light to heal and leave when your health is full. There are enough flares if you get stuck but having 5 at the end is good. I did NOT pick up hunting rifle as most times you need more shots to hit multiple enemies than power. ALWAYS RELOAD your weapons after firefights. Save all flaregun ammo for boss. Do it on a SEPERATE NORMAL playthrough.

The first part of the game:
The first few encounters with taken can be avoided by using your light and running past them. At the road with the cars, I ran right and hid behind a non posessed vehicle opposite the doors you need to clear the darkness from. From there shine your light then run for it.
I used a flash bang in the park by the broken road bit and ignored the tools. I ran through the ally, up the stairs and over without stopping to fight.
In the playground I went left then when the posessed stuff attacks I stayed by the fallen tree, shone the light at the gates then legged it.

Church:
At the church stay by the doors and shine your light on the word KEY when the truck attacks.
Use the furnace words to take out taken - take it slow as some enemys will spawn from behind you.

Forest/ rocky bit:
Do NOT pick up the batteries before the chair with TV (pick them up after the taken are delt with, so that you have more for the next bit).
When the invisible taken appear use your light and batteries and pistol to take them out. Then pick up the batteries. Get to the train car by going right and using the boom words whenever possible. pick up flash bang and flare gun. Run to safe haven avoiding taken.
When you get to the book bit kill the flying books on the bridge. walk through the words without lighting them up. More books attack - I ran by the left side and poped a flare. When at the safe haven get the tools by it. The books will have disbanded.

Streetlight bit:
go right down the ramp then head along the left side. keep using your light and move between the lights that come on. Shoot any taken that are in front that you have de darked with pistol (or shotgun). The ones behind usually cop it in the lights. Go through the gap by the fence and run forward poping a flare if the taken get to close.

Monster trucks:
USE the vehicle to get to the posts / fence at the switch.Use high beams on 1 monster truck, finish off with boosted light. Go out then hide behind the posts when the monster truck charges. Watchfor taken, some do spawn. Use the light to heal. Then sort the second one out. There are batteries and a pump action shotgun by the switch. When you use the switchjump in the new car and head to the open doors. Use high beams to sort out posessed objects and the taken from the building. Finish off with pistol.

Sawmill:
In the trap turn and engage the heavy use shotgun to stun if necissary. Flashbang on the huddled up group pistol to finish. At the chainsaw taken, use a flare, boosted light and advance blasting with stotgun, then kill the following taken.
In the building you can boost the lantern and snipe with pistol to take out taken from a distance. There is alwars one that comes up behind when you advance a bit. When upstairs go in to trigger the taken through the window, go out the way you came and blast with pistol. Go back in head left and pop a flare. Take out the two taken in front then the two behind who come from where you have been.
Walk onto the moving bridge bit and pop another flare (I had 7 left)as you get off. Boosted ligt and shotgun the enemies.

End:
Collect the flares, ammo and supplies from the appartment. Use flare gun on TV and RELOAD. drop down and engage any taken and any posessed objects in the imediate area. Use flares for safety, Flaregun TV again. DO NOT go forward - stay back (by where you dropped down) and take out any taken. Use flaregun on TV, Reload. Do it again. Advance and pop flares like there no tomorrow throughout and at the boat pop a few more (there are spares on the dock). Use flaregun to wipe out the boat. The flares will stop the flying things.

I know most has been covered but this is how I did it (in an hour and 8 minutes). It might sound daft but most of the time the enemies arnt much threat, its when they group together and when the player mucks it up.

Just a little tip after beating the boat.Do not skip any cutscenes or it may or will freeze before loading the credits.Hopefully even after skipping returning to the game after dashboarding should help.(i did not turn off my xbox)

You need to complete 'the signal' in one go. Anytime you die along the way or quit the game, you'll have to start all over again. Pop goes the achievement if you successfully completed the signal without dying or restarting mid game.