Crackdown 2 drops July 6

This morning, Microsoft announced that Crackdown 2 will miss its previously announced, first-half-of-2010 release window…by not by much. The Xbox 360 exclusive will now ship on July 6 in North America, July 9 in the UK and Europe, and July 8 in Asia, Australia, and New Zealand. The game is not yet rated by the Entertainment Software Ratings Board in the US and Canada.

Developed by newly formed Scottish studio Ruffian Games, Crackdown 2 is the sequel to Realtime Worlds' popular 2007 hybrid shooter-platformer. The studio is taking one of the original game's biggest strengths--online cooperative play throughout the campaign--and expanding it to support four players. Crackdown 2 will also feature competitive multiplayer modes for up to 16 gamers.

[WARNING SPOILERS AHEAD] Crackdown 2 takes its cue from the end of the original game, when members of a federal crime-busting task force unknowingly unleashed a virus onto the metropolis where the game is set. That virus created a race of mutated zombies--that Ruffian has dubbed "the Freaks"--who come out at night to wreak even more havoc than the original game's human opponents.

For more on Crackdown 2, check out GameSpot's previous coverage.