E3 has yet to begin, but surely some of the show's finest news has already arrived. Zeno Clash II, ACE Team's sequel to its strange and wonderful first-person face-puncher, has been confirmed for release on PC, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in "early 2013," publisher Atlus announced today. This time around, it's an open-world affair, complete with two-player online campaign co-op.

The sequel returns to the land of Zenozoik, teaming Ghat up with his sister Rimat to save the fallen Father-Mother. Expect new weapons, items, creatures, and RPG elements like improving stats.

"The world of Zenozoik is one of wild dreams and wilder nightmares," ACE Team co-founder Andres Bordeu said in the announcement. "This is part of the reason we are working on Zeno Clash II, to give players the opportunity to explore Zenozoik with a friend via online cooperative multiplayer, turning those moments of wonder and awe into a shared adventure. We will make certain that going back and forth between solo and cooperative play preserves the consistency and impact of the narrative experience, while still allowing friends easily drop in and out of the game's fulfilling exploration and visceral melee combat."

Here's the announcement trailer, and we have three screenshots too.