Report: Temple Run 2 for iOS Launching Tonight

Update: The game is now available via the App Store.

The sequel to Temple Run is upon us. Players will have even more chances to slide, leap, and collect coins in Temple Run 2, which will hit the U.S. App Store later tonight.

The game hit the New Zealand App Store this morning, and is expected to reach our shores by day's end, according to Touch Arcade.

Don't expect completely new fun, though. Touch Arcade's Jared Nelson already got his hands on the game, which reportedly features similar camera sweeps, the same creepy monkeys in pursuit, and the combination of swipes and tilts found in the original title.

It's not all the same, though. Nelson cited an upgrade to the game's graphics, and a different setting for the marathon-man hero. "The real improvement, though, is just how fluid and natural the environment feels," he wrote.

Compared to the original Temple Run, with its rigid straightaways and 90-degree turns, the new incarnation gets "curvy and hilly," he said, with a more "real" feel.

Additionally, Temple Run 2 offers four playable characters, each with unique strengths, plus upgradeable features.

According to Touch Arcade, the game should land in the U.S. market at 11 p.m. Eastern. As of press time, only the original Temple Run is available in the iOS App Store.

Imangi Studios did not immediately respond to PCMag's request for comment.

It's no surprise that Imangi Studios is churning out a Temple Run sequel, based on the success of the initial game. Apple announced earlier this month that Temple Run was downloaded more than 75 million times in 2012.

"The success of our game […]was nothing short of astonishing," Keith Shepherd, co-founder of Imangi Studios, said at the time. "We were simply looking to create a game that was fun and easy to play, but once it hit the App Store, the game took off."

Temple Run launched for Android last year, almost a year after the iOS version was released. After its first day in the Google Play market, the game reached fourth on the list of Top New Free games, and earned an average rating of 4.3 out of 5 stars, generated by more than 20,130 user reviews.

For more, see PCMag's review of Temple Run (for Android) and the slideshow above.

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