Developer IO Interactive and publisher Square Enix have decided to move up the release date for their crime-drama shooter and follow up to Kane & Lynch: Dead Men. Yes, Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days will be releasing a week earlier than expected, on August 17, 2010.

The decision to move the release date up may have been influenced by the fact that Mafia 2 will be coming out on August 24. Exciting news for those who wanted to get their hands on Kane & Lynch that much sooner. We haven't been shy on coverage for the game, both multiplayer and single player, so in the five weeks you'll have to wait for the title, it might be nice to get acquainted with it.

The ad-machine for Kane & Lynch 2 has been pretty steady, and seems like IO is putting a bit more on the line to make sure the game is at least known about, if not a moderate success. I'm not (and I don't think IO is) expecting the game to receive incredibly high scores, but something higher than what Dead Men received when it was released back in 2007. Three years is a long time to take a look at what your game did right and wrong, and I'm hoping IO used the time wisely. I'm still looking forward to the game, and I'm sure that if I get anything out of it, it'll be a fun action game experience.

And fans of the Hitman series? Look at it this way, if Dog Days doesn't do so well, IO Interactive will always be able to release a next-gen Hitman and make it up to everyone. That's what I'm thinking, anyway.

Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days will be paroled earlier than expected, on August 17, 2010 for Xbox 360, PS3, and PC.

Source: Destructoid