Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days due in 2010

IO Interactive's Kane & Lynch: Dead Men introduced the world to the titular duo in a violent third-person shooter that received a lukewarm reception from critics. That was never going to be the last gamers saw of the pair, as Lionsgate landed the rights to bring Kane & Lynch to the big screen even before the original game launched. (Bruce Willis has since reportedly signed on to play Kane.)

Now a follow-up to Dead Men is on the way, as Square Enix, the new owner of publisher Eidos, today announced Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days. Set for release next year, Dog Days is being developed by IO Interactive, the Danish studio behind the first title, as well as the recent Mini Ninjas, the cult favorite Freedom Fighters, and the long-running Hitman series. The sequel will see Kane and Lynch heading to China and getting tangled up in the Shanghai underworld.

According to Square Enix, Dog Days will include new Fragile Alliance modes, expanding on the multiplayer mode from the first game where players had to work together but at any moment could go rogue and steal loot from teammates. Details were fuzzy beyond that, with the publisher touting a new visual style inspired by documentary films and "the user-generated [content] era."

Kayne & Lynch: Dog Days will be coming to the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC in 2010. No rating information is yet available for the game, although its predecessor was rated 18 by the BBFC and M for Mature by the ESRB.