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On Major Nelson's weekly podcast -- with a host left laughing and teary-eyed due to the Xbox head's dental-related lisp -- Aaron Greenberg did some NPD boasting before ruminating on the first half of 2010. After pointing out Mass Effect 2, Splinter Cell Conviction, and Alan Wake, he confirmed Crackdown 2 as part of Microsoft's list of "triple-A, exclusive" titles heading to the Xbox 360 during "the first half of the year."

"Those are just the exclusives, that doesn't include Final Fantasy ... there's no way we had a first half of the year like that last year," Greenberg added. The back end of the upcoming year is no slouch either in his eyes, with Halo Reach and Fable 3 said to be on schedule for launch in the Fall. Considering the first Crackdown's February release date, we're hoping for a similarly timed release of the sequel (just in time for its third birthday!). We've followed up with Greenberg and will update this post if we hear more.

Light is, by most accounts, a pretty good thing. It's warm, it makes plants grow and, perhaps most importantly, allows us to see. At least, that was its most important function. Now, thanks to Alan Wake, we know that light's ultimate purpose is to disintegrate monsters. In the small mountain town of Bright Falls, a simple flashbang becomes a weapon of mass destruction and an ordinary road flare is transmogrified from a beacon of hope to a harbinger of doom.

If you don't believe us, check out the new teaser -- part of a week-long Alan Wake feature at 1UP -- after the break.

Alan Wake will allegedly premiere in late May of next year on Xbox 360. MCV reports that "a source close to the game" gave the new release date and suggested that the title would be promoted "in the style of a Hollywood movie."

Officially, we know that Wake's drawn out development will conclude in "Spring 2010" -- around the 5-year mark. We've also previously been told that the game has been done since August and is in hibernation being polished over and over again. We've followed up with Remedy and Microsoft to see if either would like to confirm today's reported release date.

According to a Remedy managing director Matias Myllyrinne, the studio wants to discuss the possibility of leaving the ending of its upcoming thriller Alan Wake off discs sent to press with its publisher, Microsoft. "I think we're going to be insanely careful about how much of the story we reveal," Myllyrinne told G4TV. "I'd like to hold it back, [I] don't want anybody to spoil it for the audience. That's just my personal feeling."

Using the twist ending of The Sixth Sense as an analogy, Myllrinne says he'd prefer players be able to piece together the secrets of Bright Falls on their own before having them spoiled by others. Although admirable, his analogy can only mean one of two things: Alan Wake is dead or he's Haley Joel Osment. Either way, we're already terrified.

If given the choice of becoming a (presumably) anthropomorphic vegetable, Phil Spencer would opt for an eggplant. Sure, we spoke to the confident head of Microsoft Game Studios about other things -- Halo, Project Natal, Fable, Crackdown, the Xbox 360's successor, blah blah blah -- but with that profound scoop out of the way, there's barely any reason to read this interview.

Mind you, the part where Spencer suggests that alternate forms of input (whether in addition to or in substitute of traditional controllers) might become a common expectation is pretty interesting. You should definitely read that.

Joystiq: We just came out of the Tokyo Game Show panel discussion for Project Natal ...

Phil Spencer: The creators panel.

Yes, the creators panel. Hideo Kojima was there; they brainstormed about all these games. How much focus is Microsoft Game Studios placing on Natal development internally in comparison to other projects?

It's a big focus for us in first party. As a first party, I think it's our duty, it's our responsibility to look at the new technologies that we bring to our platform. We did this with Live. We did at launch of 360. When we look at Project Natal as an opportunity for first party to truly innovate on our platform, creating new experiences, new intellectual property, we're very focused. A large percentage of the studio right now is thinking about Natal as part of what they're doing.

Previously on Alan Wake... in search of lost manuscript pages for a novel he doesn't recall writing, Alan Wake is searching the Pacific Northwest town of Bright Falls for his missing wife. The pages aren't only a clue as to where Alan must search next, but seem to be the basis of a dark force taking over the small town.

In the latest demo of Alan Wake, the title character is without a weapon or the protection of a light source -- the only thing that can slow down the darkness taking over the small town. During this section of the game, Alan must retreat into the darkened forests, pursued by an FBI agent named Nightingale who is sure Wake is to blame for all of the terrible things happening in the town. Sadly, Nightingale may not be wrong.

During his speech at GDC Europe – exhaustively titled "From Max Payne to Alan Wake: Creating Intellectual Properties the Remedy Way" (air!) – Remedy Managing Director Matias Myllyrinne laid out the seven pillars the company uses for its games:

1. Strong Lead Character -- Main character is iconic and easy to get on the surface. Things went wrong when Myllyrinne wanted the Max Payne sequel to simply be called The Fall of Max Payne. The compromised title admittedly didn't work out in the sales department. He didn't mention anything about Rockstar's reimagined Max Payne in the latest sequel.

2. Mainstream approachability -- Avoiding niche and cliché settings (for video games that would mean no WWII setting, dragons, sci-fi, etc.). Having gameplay mechanics that are approachable (low barrier of entry to start playing the game).

3. Cinematic -- Taking lessons learned from movies. The presentation of Max Payne makes this pretty obvious. With Alan Wake the company is focusing on the trinity of the flashlight, Alan himself (see: pillar one), and the gun. This also lead Myllyrinne to an anecdote about presentation, saying "It's not what things are, it's what the audience thinks things are." He mentioned the Ingram gun was made bigger in Max Payne because people expect that gun to be larger than it actually is in real life.

Remedy writer Sam Lake narrated a video presentation of Alan Wake at gamesCOM, providing the most detailed look we've seen yet at the psychological thriller. We see Wake realize that his wife is missing, and begin the undertaking of piecing together the manuscript that he doesn't remember writing, and whose events are coming true. Lake discusses the role of the game's light sources, which act as shelter and weapons against the shadowy, possessed townspeople.

We're delighted to see this much of Alan Wake. By revealing this much footage, Remedy seems to be treating it like a real game that, in fact, "is done."

Remedy Managing Director Matias Myllyrinne tells Joystiq that Alan Wake is finished and getting all gussied up for its release next spring. After a GDC Europe presentation on how Remedy handles intellectual property, we asked the executive if the long-in-development title would be ready to wake when the snow melts. Myllyrinne noted, "It's all done, we're just polishing at this point."

Wow, great! With something like six months to go before its "spring 2010" launch, Alan Wake should shine by the time it's released. Considering the title has been in development since 2005, it's good to know that the game is "done" and just trying to become its very best.

Now that Alan Wake is officially out of hiding, we decided it was time to hit up Remedy for some info. Thankfully, Remedy only slammed the door on us a few times before finally acquiescing to our request for an interview. Foot planted firmly in the doorway, we had a chance to ask Oskari Häkkinen, Head of Franchise Development, a few questions. Read on to learn about the game's shift from open-world to a more linear adventure, choosing a writer as the protagonist and just what you'll be doing when you aren't killing monsters with a flashlight. Also, because we just had to know, find out what Remedy thinks of the new Max Payne.

The official Alan Wake fan site, Brightfalls.net, has received word from developer Remedy that the decision whether or not to produce a PC version of the game is entirely in the hands of its publisher, Microsoft. "Remedy has a deep heritage in PC gaming and would love to see a PC version available to its PC followers," the statement reads. "Ultimately however this decision lies with our publisher."

Still, Remedy seems to expect Microsoft to eventually free up the game from 360-exclusivity, as it says that, "PC plans are currently open," but "it's safe to say that at least a simultaneous launch with the Xbox version will not happen at this late stage." Perhaps these are the comments on the PC version's outlook Remedy had promised us earlier this month.

Further doubt has been cast on Alan Wake's timely arrival on PC ... if he ever shows up at all. Following up on a Remedy forum post, which put the mouse and keyboard edition to the back of the line, Edge discovered the PC version is in an even more precarious state than first thought. Sam Lake, lead writer for Alan Wake, told the site that the Xbox 360 version is currently getting all the attention and plans "are up in the air and open." He added, "Once we get this version done we'll see."

When pushed further, Lake repeated that "plans are open" and the company will "evaluate the situation and see what makes sense." Given our wide range of programming expertise, we know that Xbox 360-to-PC (and vice versa) development is only a slightly more evolved form of ctrl-c, ctrl-v, so what's going on with Mr. Wake is a bit of a mystery to us.

Potentially bad news for PC-toting Alan Wake fans, a recent forum post by Remedy's MarkusRMD has left the release window of the PC version dangling in suspense. When asked directly about the development of the PC version of Alan Wake, MarkusRMD responded, "Unfortunately all I can say at this point is that we're focusing all our efforts on the 360 version and will be making comments in regards to the PC at a later in time."

While not an outright confirmation, it certainly sounds like the PC version could release later than the Xbox 360 version, which is currently scheduled to release in spring 2010. We've contacted Microsoft -- the game's publisher -- and will update this post as soon as we hear anything new.

[Via Shacknews]

E3 was brütal! If you blinked, for a split/second, you missed something. Even if you were trine to keep up, it was a blur -- staying a.wake like that, you only pushed yourself to the brink of your own dark void. That's where Joystiq comes in; to crackdown on the madness; to reach out ... with conviction -- phew! Crysis averted.

We've scoured the dark corners and survived the inferno to piece together this roundup of all things Xbox at E3. Why? Just 'cause we love you. So, draw nier and shift your eyes past the break.

Update: Congratulations to Joyswag winner heyo007! Sweet dreams ...

After emptying our pockets post-E3, we came across some nifty Alan Wake swag that was tucked away in the side pockets of our carpenter jeans. And, in Joystiq tradition, we're giving it all away to one lucky reader.

Up for grabs is an exclusive (and quite rare) Alan Wake E3 faceplate that's numbered 477 out of 500 and an attractive Alan Wake t-shirt (sized XL, of course). If you think about it, the swag pairing makes logical sense: the faceplate covers your Xbox 360 and the tee covers your buff, naked self.

• To enter, leave a comment telling us about your most recent nightmare.
  
• You must be 18 years or older and a resident of the US or Canada (excluding Quebec).
  
• Limit 1 entry per person.
  
• This entry period ends at 11:59 pm ET on Thursday, June 11.
  
• At that time, we'll randomly select 1 winner to receive a Alan Wake E3 faceplate and t-shirt (ARV: $50). Please check your email!
• For a list of complete rules, click here