Remedy Entertainment officially announces development of Alan Wake for PC and next-gen consoles, though the existence of their upcoming "psychological action thriller" has been public knowledge for a couple of weeks now. Here's the announcement, which is accompanied by some new screenshots on the Alan Wake Website, but does not include a release date:

REMEDY UNVEILS ALAN WAKE, A PSYCHOLOGICAL ACTION THRILLER

Remedy Entertainment Ltd, a leading developer of cinematic action games, unveiled Alan Wake, their new title, today at the E3 expo (Electronic Entertainment Expo, ATI Technologies Inc. stand) in Los Angeles.

Alan Wake is a psychological action thriller, a unique new take in the world of gaming. The game is set in an idyllic all-American small town and its surroundings in the state of Washington. Alan Wake, the game's protagonist, is a bestselling horror writer, who writes a novel about his darkest nightmares. In the game, those nightmares come true. As with Remedy's previous games, story and atmosphere are fundamental elements.

"In Alan Wake we want to weave the story tightly into the gameplay.
Combining intense and cinematic storytelling with player freedom is an interesting and exciting challenge," says Sam Lake, Lead Writer, "Mood and atmosphere are essential parts of a thriller, and we want them to be present throughout the whole gameplay experience."

The game features a massive, open world for the players to explore. The game design is mission based with the player as the driving force behing the action, and as with their previous games, Remedy again focuses completely on delivering the best possible single player experience.

"We're putting a huge effort into building a free-roaming, living world for the players." says Petri Jarvilehto, Lead Game Designer, "The true power of the next generation comes from the dynamic nature of the environment, not only making things pretty, but also making the world more versatile, varied and immersive."

The use of light is a significant gameplay element. Remedy has developed proprietary new technology to support the gameplay of the title and to push the high definition visuals to the next level.

Alan Wake is currently being developed for the next generation consoles and PC's. Remedy has not announced a release date.

The official website www.alanwake.com has been updated with more in-game screenshots of the game.