At PAX East 2010, we got to get some hands-on time with Shank, a new revenge story that will be coming to the XBox 360, PSN and PC. As perhaps one of the best games that we saw on the floor this year, we positively loved the game. The awesome graphics, music, and gameplay, has the 2D-X editors whispering that Shank is already in the running to be the 2D Game of the Year.

Shank is a revenge story: that was revealed to us (storywise) during a private hotel screening that also showed off a new level and weapon that wasn’t on display on the PAX East 2010 floor.

Not that the story really matters in this type of title; it’s all about balls-to-the-wall action. The gameplay reminds me a lot of old school action/beat ‘em ups with basic pick-up-and-play controls, and lots of street vermin to mow down. Come to think of it, it can also be seen as a much more violent version of Mirror’s Edge Mobile as there’s rooftop battles and the ability to quickly dash across billboards.

Shank is a violent game. Really, really violent, but that was so bad-ass. There’s just something that gets to you when you grab a guy, stick a knife into him and slam him over and over again. Speaking of which, Shank (the main character of the game) has knives, a chainsaw, guns, grenades and can get other weapons later on such as a shotgun (which we got to see a small glimpse of). You can do loads of things to your enemies, like grappling them, throwing them off buildings, and stringing together some of the most brutal combos seen in a 2D video game.

The graphics were really quite pleasing. It reminded me very much of a comic book in motion. As a guy that loves good graphic novels, this excited me because the story seems to actually be pretty good. However, I told the developer that even if there is no story, the gameplay will survive very well by itself due to the unnecessary and over the top violence.

The voice acting reminded me a lot of a Tarantino or Rodriguez movie gone animated. As a Tarantino fan, you’ll love this game. The setting (most of what we’ve seen in the demo seems to be in the modern take on the old west) adds extra flair and helps to define the characters.

All that saw the game agree that Shank has the makings of something very, very special. Look out for hands-on video coming soon.