It is a story pitch you may care to recite in the gravel-voiced tones of a Hollywood action movie trailer: “Meet Kane - he's a flawed mercenary hell-bent on revenge. And the only man who's on his side is a fully-medicated psychopath. Meet Lynch.”

Kane & Lynch was the brightest hope for Eidos, owned by SCi, in the hugely lucrative pre-Christmas video games market. One of a clutch of sophisticated titles for the high-definition next-generation PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 games consoles, the game tells the story of a mercenary who is kidnapped on his way to death row by The 7, a shadowy organisation, which believes that Kane stole their money. The 7 assign Lynch, a dangerous psychopath, to monitor Kane's every move.

Like many next-generation titles, Kane & Lynch attempts to immerse players in its storyline. The completion of a task is rewarded with a new twist in the drama, such as when The 7 kill Kane's wife after he fails to make a payment on time. Like many games aimed at an adult market, Kane & Lynch features lots of swearing, the F-word being the ultimate prop for lazy scriptwriters seeking “authenticity”.

In the weeks leading up to the game's release, Eidos was bullish. “No gamer will have experienced anything like this before, both graphically and in terms of gameplay. Take [the developer] iO's innovation and graphical excellence ... add a gripping story, an anti-hero and a psychopath and you get the ultimate next generation experience,” Larry Sparks, the global head of brands management at Eidos, said.

He was only half-right. Although Kane & Lynch was an acceptable game, it was released at a time when there were many excellent alternatives, notably Assassin's Creed from rival studio Ubisoft - a stunning-looking tale of medieval skulduggery; and Microsoft's enthralling sci-fi role-player Mass Effect.

Kane & Lynch, meanwhile, was let down by a poor control system and a targeting system so frustrating that hardened games players were soon hurling their controllers against the walls and weeping. Some suspected that the game had been rush-finished in time for the Christmas boom, not uncommon in an industry where the difference between releasing in December and January can be measured in the millions.

No doubt following SCi's announcement, Kane & Lynch 2 will be released this year or next, and with the film rights having been sold to Lionsgate, you could soon be hearing that movie trailer voiceover for real.