Are there manuscript pages in areas where Taken spawn endlessly

alan-wake

I really enjoy finding manuscript pages while playing Alan Wake, and I do my best not to miss any of them. What I haven't been able to bring myself to do is thoroughly scan areas where Taken spawn without end (I usually do my best to get out of such areas as quickly as possible).

Am I missing out on some manuscript pages this way?

Best Answer

There are, but remarkably few.
Moreover, most infinite spawn areas can be returned to once the spawn points have been 'untriggered'. And most - if not all- manuscripts that are technically surrounded by infinite spawn areas, can usually be picked up without any resistance, as they lie in places the Taken don't (easily) visit.

This GamePressure page lists all the locations of the manuscripts.
Cross-referencing it with this list on GameFAQs of all the areas where enemies spawn endlessly (thank you victoringram!), the following conclusions can be made:

  • In Episodes 1 and 2 there are no endless spawning zones.
    (There are areas which at first seem to have infinite spawn, but these can be cleared out with a little patience and persistence.)

  • In Episode 3 there is an area where you would have to defeat 9 waves of Taken to clear the area. You can bypass this by continuing onwards until your objective becomes to "Talk to Pat Maine". Returning now will allow you to move freely.
    After the second cable car ride there is an infinite spawn zone, but this one can also be bypassed, by running ahead towards the bridge and killing the Taken there. Returning is now possible without adversary.

  • In Episode 4 there are some spots with infinite spawning, up until the Anderson's farm. Obtaining the manuscripts here isn't very hard, however, because the first ones are in an area with only poltergeists, and the latter ones can be found during calm moments and along the path.
    After leaving the cabin afterwards, enemies will spawn endlessly on foot, but not while you're in the car, and this spawning can be avoided altogether by killing all the enemies in the field in front of the Anderson farm, after which you can safely return.

    "However, the field and the road in front of it will become infinite respawn once you enter the gate leading to the backhoe loader and will stay that way.

  • Episode 5 has no respawns.

  • Episode 6 starts out with infinite respawns before and after the motel, which can once more be completely circumvented by killing the first group of poltergeists on the bridge. Between this and the next bridge, Taken will appear endlessly, this time without remedy. Here is a manuscript to be found in the over-lit garage (on Nightmare difficulty) as well as one a bit later near a lamp post. Easy pickings. Then

    the junkyard becomes infinite respawn once you power the generator, but you can return after reaching the next Safe Haven (not counting the one right outside the junkyard).

    There are three manuscript pages in the scrapyard, ready to be plucked after freeing it of the Taken.

    After going through the small shack, there’s a large two-part section (divided by a Safe Haven) which is infinite respawn and cannot be changed.
    Lastly, the area just before you use the elevator will have infinite respawns once you power the generator. And the area just before the final fight will respawn enemies until the poltergeists are killed.

    There are two more manuscripts in this last section, both attainable at calm moments.

Once I do a rerun of Alan Wake I might improve on this overview.