Manhunt 2 denied UK release

[satchmo]

Ha! That's an image. "honest love, I wasn't chopping up that mental patient!"

[satchmo]

I read a quote about that case from the Police involved that said the game had absolutely nothing to do with the murder, and any link was just made up by the tabloids.

[satchmo]

I read a quote about that case from the Police involved that said the game had absolutely nothing to do with the murder, and any link was just made up by the tabloids.

[satchmo]

ooh i think ive broken the thread, sorry.

[I, Cosh]

And, even if it had had something to do with it (which it didn't) both of them were under 18 so shouldn't have been playing it in the first place. Parental responsibility, eh?

[davidjatt]

Well, I'm a bit annoyed about this, as I did play through the first game, and thought it was ok.  However, in saying that, when I heard about some of the stuff you are able to do in this new one...  it must be particularly bad, as already said, for the BBFC to not rate this.  However, they usually don't know their arse from their elbow in things like this.  The last Timesplitters game had a 15 certificate, when all it really needed would be one of those PEGI ratings of 16+.

By the way, a code of honour does not mean the game is more acceptable.  In the games you mentioned, faceless thugs are just thrown at you to kill.  It would have been a bit more credible if you cited the Hitman games, Blood Money in particular.  I, for one, found it hard to take out the first target in the game, as he pleads for his life, and I felt awful for shooting him.  Or at least I would if I was being a ponce, as he was merely a sprite, who doesn't actually exist.  And that's the important thing many must remember about games, which MPs and Congressmen take for granted.  If a person goes to emulate a game, there was something wrong there in the first place.

Rant over, apologies.

[Buttonman]

Haven't you ever read 'Computer Warrior'? Those 'sprites' are real people y'know!

[Peter Wolf]

   i dont feel guilty about shooting all those white south african supremisists.  thats what they are there for.

[davidjatt]

I was referring to the theme park owner.

[Dunk!]

I felt sorry for the guys who have spent a year+ of their lives developing and play testing this game. Relentless grim violence and gore, plus overtime.

Then I remembered their huge wages and great bonus scheme.

Bastards.

[Keef Monkey]

Yeah, Hitman did make you feel a bit guilty about that one! My stance on the Manhunt thing is that while it may be completely irredeemably violent and morally reprehensible and might well be something that no sensible or decent human being would enjoy playing I have a real problem with someone else deciding what I'm mature enough to handle. It's the age old censorship argument, if I put it on and find it's a bit too icky for me I have the power to switch it off, and that's all the censorship that's required with these things.

Also, I doubt that it would have run into this problem if the last game hadn't been made the scapegoat for murder(wrongly). I also have to admit that I played the first game for an hour, got bored and threw it to the side. It wasn't until it was on the cover of a newspaper that I decided to dig it out again to see what the fuss was about, and once I got into the game I really enjoyed it. So if anything I probably want to play Manhunt 2 even more now just to see what was so bad that I'm not responsible enough to play it.

[Peter Wolf]

    Such a waste of resources.     Why couldnt they come up with something new ?    They are good at what they do  but i never liked the GTA series and never played  them.      

    Who did the research for  it  ?     How accurate are the torture scenes ?   Has someone there  got experience in torture etc ?

   I dont know.

[Satanist]

"To be honest if you are happy to spunk £30 on a game that lets you torture people you have to be missing something in your life."

Ach well I guess I'll have to stick to stalking single females and torturing small animals to get my kicks.

[Ochs]

The same thing happened in cinema in the seventies, films contained more and more gore, violence and sex, this led to loads of banning and censorship. During the eighties and nineties it all died down again, as it will this time. After a while the majority (with the exception of those that are underage and getting a kick from playing or watching these things simply because they shouldn't be)and realise that what makes a good game is good gameplay, not violence for the sake of it. Ditto films I think (substitute plot, characterisation for gameplay). The classics will stand the test of time and others will only be collected by a niche market. That's why A Clockwork Orange is still revered as a classic and Last House on The Left is a pile of shit that is admired only by a small minority of film buffs.

For what it's worth, I think a major part of the problem with games is that many parents don't realise what the content of a game is and think 'It is just a game what could be wrong with it?'. Consequently loads of kids get bought GTA and so on for Christmas. Suppliers sell them because they are bought by adults. Unfortunately if parents don't take more responsibility I think we'll see more and more censorship.

[Keef Monkey]

Coming up with something new is always commendable, but if you've done something that was successful it makes sense to follow it up. I'm sure if you were enjoying the first season of a tv show and found out the creators were making a second you wouldn't see it as a waste of resources.