Less than a month prior to its release, Manhunt 2 was banned in multiple countries before getting the dreaded Adults Only rating from the ESRB. What a week.
Anticipation had been building for the July 9, 2007 release of Rockstar Games' Manhunt 2, the sequel to the ultra-violent 2003 game, but in 1 week, problems built up that have all but killed the game's chance at seeing the light of day.
It was mere weeks before the title would hit the PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable and Nintendo Wii.
The blog GamePolitics may well have kicked it off by asking on June 18th: "Will Manhunt 2 Come Under Fire This Week?" Blogger and game journalist Dennis McCauley probably had no idea what he'd predicted.
Banned
The very next day, the game was effectively banned in the United Kingdom when the British Board of Film Classification refused to even give the game a rating.
Following the BBFC's decision, Ireland quickly followed suit. Then a ban looked likely in Australia and finally, the Italian communications minister Paolo Gentiloni announced that he'd be working to have it banned there, as well.
By the time Paolo's announcement was made though, there were bigger problems.
Adults Only Rating
The Center for Commercial-Free Childhood had been working to get Manhunt 2 rated Adults Only, prohibiting its sale to minors. What they didn't know was that the Entertainment Software Ratings Board has given it that very rating.
This spelled very bad news for Rockstar Games.
Although Nintendo has relaxed a bit since the days of editing the blood out of Mortal Kombat, it's still against their policy to release an Adults Only title. The game's opponents could jump for joy since the most controversial element of this game would have been the use of the Nintendo Wii's motion sensor control (the Wiimote) to make stabbing and other violent motions.
As it turned out Sony had a similar policy.
So never mind the economic issues, the game not being sold at big-box retailers like Wal-Mart and Blockbuster, with an Adults Only rating, the game didn't even have a system to call home anymore.
What Is This Manhunt Anyway?
Manhunt was released in December 2003 and for the most part didn't get much attention besides being banned in New Zealand.
In that game, the player controlled James Earl Cash, an escaped convict who's being forced to do the bidding of a snuff film director. This director sends Cash out to kill thugs he's set up so it can be filmed.
The controversial (and for some, disturbing) element of the game comes from the camera close-ups every time the player performs on execution on a thug.
Not much was known about the sequel other than that it involved an insane asylum escapee and promised to be very gruesome.
What's Next?
At the time of this writing, the game's fate is very much unknown. On June 21st, Take-Two Interactive's (Rockstar Games' parent company) Chairman Strauss Zelnick told Reuters he stood behind the game.
Clearly, the early July release is out of the question. The only serious possibilities are reworking the game to get the lesser Mature rating from the ESRB or, as McCauley suggested, a PC version.
Regardless, Rockstar Games managed to give the gaming world a week of epic drama.
