Proof Positive that the PS2 is still flying high!

Having just escaped from his cell in a mental asylum, Dr Daniel Lamb (the brand new character that you'll be playing in this sequel) must stick to the shadows so as not to be seen by the patients still behind bars. Accidentally step into the light and the nutter in the neighbouring cell tries to urinate over your grubby hospital pyjamas. The guy in the next cell? Well, you don’t have to worry much about him - having just kicked a chair out in front of you as you approach, you find him swinging back and forth from a noose...yup, this is certainly Manhunt. Dirty, depressing and absolutely bloody brilliant.

This sequel has a completely different story to the original. You play as a scientist who, affected by his own controversial weapons research, has been committed to an asylum - a place filled with other victims of these terrible experiments. The game kicks off during a thunder storm, in which Lamb manages to escape. Like its predecessor, the environments aren't the most detailed in the world - drab textures, concrete greys and boxy corridors are the order of the day - but then this isn't supposed to be Disney Land, is it? It's supposed to be miserable - and the blood streaked chequered floors, the rain outside, and the cries of the insane all help to add to the distinctly unsettling atmosphere.

Man alive!

it's good to see that the same Manhunt feel has been retained - particularly where things like controls are concerned (it's very similar to the original) but just to keep you on your toes, these are loads of clever little touches which will make for a much richer experience. Take sound for example - already and award winning feature of the previous game and it has been implemented just as creatively and effectively in Manhunt 2.

You can still bang on walls for example, to attract patrolling guards - but you can now use it much more cleverly. In one level we saw, set in a brothel. You have to time the smashing of glass (to gain access to an important room) to coincide with...er, moans of pleasure of a stripper in an adjacent room, to avoid being detected! In another instance, a workman banging on a pipe helps disguise your approach for a more stealthy kill. You now have to be far more aware of you surroundings - something that's demonstrated by new environmental kills. Lure guards to certain areas and you can use fuse-boxes and even telephones to dispatch the enemy. And in a rather nice touch, you can even smash lights to create new pockets of shadow to hide in.

Remote control

It’s coming along very nicely then - just as you'd expect from Rockstar - and the extra emphasis on story (centering around paranoia and psychosis) is certainly welcome. The only real disappointment is that we've yet to see the Wii version, or know how the remote and nunchuk will be implemented - which is arguably, one of the main reasons to get excited about the game. Will it be visually superior? Will we actually get to do some hand-swinging, nunchuck-punching, remote-slicing, stab-based action? We jolly well hope so - and it won't be ling until we fine out.

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