Sony Computer Entertainment Europe’s Team Soho has released a batch of screens taken from the follow-up to the acclaimed, if controversial, The Getaway, due to hit PlayStation 2 consoles sometime this year.

Thankfully, SCEE’s marketing department has avoided shaming itself this time around, opting not to send out slightly altered photographs and instead releasing actual screenshots taken from actual game code. A novel idea, but it just might work, you never know...

As you can see, London is again faithfully depicted as a crime-ridden expansive slumland, complete with omnipresent drizzle. Indeed, The Getaway 2 looks surprisingly dark. Much darker in fact, and much more sinister than the original, perhaps pointing to an even grittier story.

Aside from the standard driving and running around type stuff, The Getaway 2 will feature a dedicated representation of parts of London’s Underground system, again raising the bar in what videogames can achieve with respect to attention ad detail.

Expect The Getaway 2 to feature more licensed vehicles, more of the city of London and an improved control and handling system that is expected to silence critics of the original.