Sega powering up Iron Man 2

Paramount and Marvel Studios' Iron Man was one of the top-performing films of 2008, having grossed nearly $600 million in total box-office sales. Sega and Secret Level's game adaptation of the same name may have turned its repulsor rays on critics, but consumers were certainly attracted to the game, making it a million-selling hit and then some.

It's no surprise, then, that Sega has been handed the reins for a follow-up. The publisher announced today that it has extended its partnership with Marvel to include a game based on Iron Man 2. The multiplatform game is expected to launch alongside the Jon Favreau-helmed, Robert Downey Jr.-led film in 2010. Sega also has the rights to create games based on Marvel's upcoming Thor and Captain America films, having shipped the Edge of Reality-developed The Incredible Hulk last year.

Details on Iron Man 2 were not revealed, though Sega did say that the game's engine has been updated and that gamers can "expect an entirely new and enhanced gameplay experience." The publisher also noted that the game is in development at Sega Studios San Francisco.

A number of high-profile actors have joined the cast or are in talks to appear in Iron Man 2. Robert Downey Jr. will reprise his role as the titular tortured hero, Don Cheadle will replace Terrence Howard as Downey's metal-clad cohort War Machine, and Gwyneth Paltrow will return as Tony Stark's secretary, Pepper Potts. Other names attached to the film include Samuel L. Jackson as SHIELD commander Nick Fury and Mickey Rourke as Soviet relic Crimson Dynamo.