If you want to to know how to manual save in Alan Wake 2, you're not alone. It's a specifically limited system that only permits saving at certain moments, something you have to earn and can only do in specific moments. So yes, while there is a manual save feature in Alan Wake 2, it's highly contextual and not especially cooperative to players who are used to just pausing and saving wherever they like - and I'll explain how it works below.
How to save in Alan Wake 2
To save in Alan Wake 2, you need to find a safe zone - aka, an illuminated room with a blue coffee thermos inside. You cannot manually save outside of these places, though there are periodic autosaves that trigger at certain moments - usually just before or after boss fights or other major events. Manual saving, however, can only be done through the Oh Deer Coffee Thermos found in safe rooms.
Not only that, but there's a total of three save slots available to you in Alan Wake 2 - if you have them all filled and want a fourth marker of your progress… well, you'll have to overwrite one, though there's also two slots for the auto-overridden quicksaves as well.
Save points and safe zones are marked on your map when you find them, and some need to be set up - for example, a cabin in a dangerous area might not be a safe zone where you can save, until you find a nearby generator and turn it on, powering up the lights. If you've found the Alan Wake 2 Witch's Hut fuse at this point you'll know exactly what's involved there.
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