Stealth Inc 2 • Eurogamer.net

Wii U exclusive Stealth Inc 2 slinks to PC, PS4, Xbox One

And PS3, Vita.

Puzzle-platforming sequel Stealth Inc 2: A Game of Clones has been announced for release on PC, PlayStation 3, PS4, PS Vita and Xbox One.

Currently a Wii U exclusive, the Metroidvania-style adventure will go multi-platform in early April.

Stealth Inc 2 is a follow-up to Stealth Inc: A Clone in the Dark (known on PC as Stealth Bastard: Tactical Espionage Arsehole).

Stealth Inc. 2: A Game of Clones review

Double trouble.

Conventional wisdom would have it that the Wii U is your archetypal Nintendo console: ideal for kids and families, not so much for the self-identifying 'hardcore' gamer. Conventional wisdom, in this instance, is an ass. If you want a challenge, Wii U absolutely has you covered: from The Wonderful 101 to Scram Kitty and his Buddy on Rails, Bayonetta 2 to New Super Luigi U, here you'll face some of the sternest tests you'll ever encounter. In that light, Stealth Inc. 2 is a surprisingly good fit for Nintendo's unfairly maligned console - and it might just be the toughest of the lot.

Its subtitle is certainly apposite given that the death count for a single level is comparable to your average George RR Martin novel. As in the original (formerly, and fittingly, known as Stealth Bastard) you play as a stumpy, goggled clone, tasked with getting through a series of deviously designed test chambers - think Portal with a more sadistic sense of humour and lashings of cartoon gore. As the title suggests, you'll spend most of your time in the shadows, distracting and dodging patrolling robots, cameras and barking dogs, avoiding traps, hacking computer terminals and generally trying to stay out of harm's way.

You don't have a weapon, but you do have a series of gadgets that unlock as you progress, and can be used to destructive effect on occasion. First up is the Inflate-a-Mate, a multi-purpose blow-up doll who can be used to trigger floor switches, give you a lift to higher platforms, and block out lights to keep you hidden. Soon you'll get hold of the Jackboy, which allows you to hack your robotic pursuers and take control of them: you can demolish barriers or trigger mechanisms with their lasers or simply move them away from where you need to go. There's a futuristic lantern that triggers light-sensitive panels and apparatus, while the Me Too device allows you to create a second clone who'll copy your actions in some of the game's most mind-melting stages.

Stealth Inc 2 release date spied for October exclusively on Wii U

Sequel ditches linear stages in lieu of a "Metroidvania" adventure.

Stealth Inc 2: A Game of Clones is set for a 23rd October release exclusively on the Wii U eShop, developer Curve Studios has confirmed to Eurogamer.

Some may know the Stealth Inc series by its original title: Stealth Bastard. It began as a free PC game before getting spruced up as a commercial release called Stealth Bastard Deluxe. Then it snuck onto PS3 and Vita last summer under the new moniker of Stealth Inc - a name that it's kept ever since when it came to iOS and Android last year.

Curiously, the first Stealth Inc/Bastard never made it onto the Wii U, where this sequel is an exclusive. It doesn't really matter though, as this is a standalone adventure.