Manhunt 2 banned in the UK

[Meacon Keaton]

What did everyone in the world have to blame for the violence pre-video games?

[Toe]

What did everyone in the world have to blame for the violence pre-video games?

[stokeriño]

What did everyone in the world have to blame for the violence pre-video games?

Witchcraft.

And the Irish.

[zero]

I'm going to get this game BECAUSE it is rated AO. That is so fucking cool!

They'll never release it as AO... no store will carry it.

[jase12881]

I wouldn't feel too bad about Rockstar in this case. A major part of their purpose with creating a game like Manhunt is to create controversy and try to push the envelope and see how much they can get away with.

Without controversy it's tough to get your game in the news media, but you can bet you'll be hearing so much about Manhunt that it will sell well even to those who don't follow the game industry very closely.

Edited June 20, 2007 by jase12881

[ChrisSteeleAteMyHamster]

I can't see what readson you'd have for WANTING to make a game so unacceptable that it ends up on the verge of total banning. What's the point? Why DO people wanna play games that involve torturing other virtual humans?

But then I can't see the excitement in movies like Hostel or Saw...They just seem like cheap shock horrors with no real quality to them.

[Anothername]

What's the point? Why DO people wanna play games that involve torturing other virtual humans?

[ChrisSteeleAteMyHamster]

What's the point? Why DO people wanna play games that involve torturing other virtual humans?

I totally agree. Manhunt's not the only game like this though. I was playing Mario Kart the other day, and it seemed like a totally innocent racing game, then all of a sudden.. BAM! Someone actually assaulted me with a giant green shell. What's the point? Why DO people want to play games in which you can physically inflict pain on other players?

Seriously, I'd understand a little more if Manhunt was a shit game with not a lot about it, making it clear that it's all about the violence. But it's not, it's a stealth game, and a better one than both Hitman and Splinter Cell, in my opinion. The gruesomeness of the game is there to create the atmosphere. Being a stealth game, the aim is of course to not get caught by those pursuing you. And when those pursuing you are maniacs carrying meat cleavers, you want to get caught even less.

Only a child would have such a black and white concept as your Mario Kart / Manhunt comment.

There's a difference between meat cleavers and green shells.

There's a difference between being a hitman and torture.

There's a difference between killing aliens in a Cathedral and running over prostitutes.

There's a difference between PG, 12, 15, 18 and Adult Only.

Every game should be looked at on it's own merits and not "Well it's ok to shoot green shells in a kiddy race game so it's ok to stalk people around to butcher them with a machete".

After playing Manhunt and Hitman I'd say there are BIG differences between the two and what each game is trying to say.

[MalaCloudy Black]

Why DO people wanna play games that involve torturing other virtual humans?

Because, not surprisingly, different people find enjoyment in different things. I'd much rather take my aggression out on virtual humans than risk actually injuring someone in a fit.

[Anothername]

What's the point? Why DO people wanna play games that involve torturing other virtual humans?

I totally agree. Manhunt's not the only game like this though. I was playing Mario Kart the other day, and it seemed like a totally innocent racing game, then all of a sudden.. BAM! Someone actually assaulted me with a giant green shell. What's the point? Why DO people want to play games in which you can physically inflict pain on other players?

Seriously, I'd understand a little more if Manhunt was a shit game with not a lot about it, making it clear that it's all about the violence. But it's not, it's a stealth game, and a better one than both Hitman and Splinter Cell, in my opinion. The gruesomeness of the game is there to create the atmosphere. Being a stealth game, the aim is of course to not get caught by those pursuing you. And when those pursuing you are maniacs carrying meat cleavers, you want to get caught even less.

Edited June 20, 2007 by Anothername

[destroyed]

The bbfc can go fuck off, i'll buy it on ebay <_

[King Ellis]

The thing that seems a little creepy to me is the Wii version, there is a line being blurred there if you're actually doing the actions for. Still though, I hardly think that it will prove to be some sort of murder training excercise, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to work out how to stab someone.

With all the recent knife crime in Britain it's hardly suprising that a stand is being taken on something like this, especially when it has previous media form. That whole thing cracked me up, this kid spent all his time on Manhunt learning how to kill people. Oh shit wait, the victim had the game but the killer didn't. Ho hum.

In the immortal words of Family Guy: "It's just a toy. Barbie has a dream car but you don't see every eight year old driving."

[Dan]

Oo.

Glad I kept my modd'd ps2, I'll have to give manhunt 2 a try >_>.

Seriously though, banning games is stupid.

If gore was enough to have something banned, why is Hostel 2 being released?

[zero]

The thing that seems a little creepy to me is the Wii version, there is a line being blurred there if you're actually doing the actions for. Still though, I hardly think that it will prove to be some sort of murder training excercise, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to work out how to stab someone.

Exactly. If video games were "murder simulators" like Jack Thompson suggests, then what the fuck is a real-life shooting range? Yeah, playing a video game, especially on the Wii, my aim with an actual gun may improve, but it doesn't mean I'm going to go shoot up my classmates. With Thompson's idiotic logic, murdering people is okay as long as video games don't make you really good at it.

As for the appeal of games like Manhunt? I dunno, maybe in some way, I am a sick, twisted bastard. I'm also a sick bastard that feels really bad if I kill an insect in real life, yet I have no problems shoving a sickle into someone's balls in a video game. You know why? Cause it's not real! Everyone has different things that entertain them - I enjoy watching people get hacked to bits in movies, it's fun! But at the end of the day, it's still just fiction and no one is actually getting hurt. As long as you can tell the difference between reality and fiction, absolutely no harm can be done.

[Vilge Duin]

Sony, Nintendo forbid AO-rated Manhunt 2

Console-makers confirm policies preventing licensed third parties from releasing Adults Only games on their systems, effectively banning the Rockstar title.

By Brendan Sinclair, GameSpot

Posted Jun 20, 2007 5:37 pm ET

When Take-Two Interactive yesterday confirmed that the Entertainment Software Rating Board handed down a rating of AO for Adults Only for Rockstar Games' Manhunt 2 on the PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable, and Nintendo Wii, the publisher said it was exploring its options.

GameSpot has confirmed with Nintendo and Sony that one of those options, which would be to accept the ESRB's judgment and release the game with the AO rating, isn't an option at all. Both companies forbid licensed third-party publishers from releasing games rated AO for Adults Only on their various hardware platforms. Though Manhunt 2 isn't slated for any of Microsoft's systems, the company has also confirmed that it does not allow AO-rated titles on the Xbox or Xbox 360.

The sole exception to this rule was in 2005 when the already released Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas was retroactively rated AO, at which point retailers pulled it from shelves and Take-Two suspended production of the game.

"It's currently our policy not to allow the playback of AO-rated content on our systems," a Sony spokesperson told GameSpot.

Nintendo's official line was much the same. "Games made for Nintendo systems enjoy a broad variety of styles, genres, and ratings," a representative told GameSpot. "These are some of the reasons our Wii and Nintendo DS systems appeal to such a broad range of people. But as with books, television, and movies, different content is meant for different audiences. That's why the ESRB provides ratings to help consumers understand the content of a game before they purchase it. As stated on Nintendo.com, Nintendo does not allow any AO-rated content on its systems."

Take-Two's most readily available alternatives are to appeal the ESRB's AO rating or to modify the game. As of press time, a Rockstar Games representative had not responded to GameSpot's inquiry about how either move would impact the game's scheduled July 10 release date.

[zero]

I've been involved in a lengthy debate about this on Digg's comment page for this article. Bottom line, Sony and Nintendo are free to make the decision, but it also exposes the fundamental flaw with ratings systems - it essentially makes the top rating obsolete. If no hardware manufacturer or retailer will allow it, why even have an AO rating?

[Tarheels.]

Probably so games like this can be banned.

[ZJ Penn]

Damn, this was one of the games I was looking forward to.

Looks like we'll have to wait 10 years till peoples standards have degraded to the point where it'll be passed no problem and we can play "Manhunt 2! The Game No-One Wanted You To See! Previously Banned Worldwide, Now In Its Full Uncut Version!". Like used to happen with some horror films like that one about cannabilism.

[Maxx]

Hopefully they'll port it over to Xbox so I can play it.

Although it looks pretty much dead in the water now.

[Regia]

As for the appeal of games like Manhunt? I dunno, maybe in some way, I am a sick, twisted bastard. I'm also a sick bastard that feels really bad if I kill an insect in real life, yet I have no problems shoving a sickle into someone's balls in a video game. You know why? Cause it's not real! Everyone has different things that entertain them - I enjoy watching people get hacked to bits in movies, it's fun! But at the end of the day, it's still just fiction and no one is actually getting hurt. As long as you can tell the difference between reality and fiction, absolutely no harm can be done.

I'm exactly the same, because if I'm playing a game, and i murder someone on the game, I know that the "person" i killed on the game is just pixels put together to look like an actual person.

I couldn't go out and say, shoot someone in the face with a shotgun, because im not sick and twisted enough to actually kill someone.

Chances are that if someone has played a game and then goes out and kills someone, then they were proberly twisted enough to go and kill someone anyway.

Edited June 21, 2007 by regia