Will we ever be able to enjoy our violent video games at peace without having to worry about the politicians in Washington screwing it up? Apparently, not as several Senators including Presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton and the anti-gamer Joe Lieberman have signed a letter calling for a review of the ESRB rating system in the wake of the Manhunt 2 fiasco.A portion of the letter reads, "As you know, in June 2007, the British Board of Film Classification refused to rate Rockstar's Manhunt 2 videogame ... stating that it contains 'unremitting bleakness and callousness of tone. In October 2007, the BBFC again refused to rate a revised Manhunt 2 stating that 'the impact of the revisions on the bleakness and callousness of tone ... is clearly insufficient. [The ESRB, however,] reduced the revised version's rating to "Mature," effectively opening the door to its widespread distribution and its licensing approval by game system manufacturers Sony and Nintendo."
We think it's fair to say the last thing the ESRB needs to be is more strict on the content it reviews. Moreover, It's growing increasingly clear that the video game industry may never reach the societal acceptance that the movie industry enjoys with its violent content.(Via IGN)
Gallery: Manhunt 2
The PSP version of Manhunt 2 is vulnerable to a hack that allows the graphic kills of Rockstar's controversial action game to remain intact, unedited. Surely, this will raise the eyebrow of the ESRB, which pulled Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas off of store shelves due to the "Hot Coffee" incident?After word spread throughout the internet of gamers hacking the M-rated version of Manhunt 2 to unlock its censored content, Take-Two has now confirmed the diabolical deed.
"Multiple edits were made to revise Manhunt 2 for its M-rated version. Hackers apparently have altered one of those edits to produce an illegally modified version of the game that can only be played on an unauthorized, modified PlayStation Portable handheld system," a Take-Two rep wrote to GamePolitics.com. "All of the game material, and especially these specific edits, was submitted to and reviewed by the ESRB in accordance with requirements regarding disclosure that were enacted two years ago and any contrary suggestion is inaccurate and irresponsible."
Because the ESRB approved Rockstar's edits of the game, it will probably be safe from any actual lawsuits, but that probably won't stop some uneducated media members from blowing it out of proportion. We just can't wait to hear from dear ol' Jack.
This week's big releases are the uber violent and highly criticized Manhunt 2 and finally Nippon Ichi's Disgaea: Afternoon of Darkness. Unfortunately for our European and Asian brothers, there's not much in the way of new software this week.
US Games
Ah, so that's why it was banned ...
Rockstar's Manhunt 2, although edited, looks quite gruesome. Although the violence is covered by the dramatic use of visual filters, it still maintains the visceral feel that many (if not most) so-called-violent games are missing. Taking a cue from The Bourne Identity, we see our favorite anti-hero kill a man with a pen -- but for reasons unknown. Check out IGN for more brutality.
Holy s***!
There sure are a lot of masked gang members, strippers, dirty cops, and more in this launch trailer for Manhunt 2. This Wii, PSP and PS2 game garnered a lot of attention when it earned the much-hated AO (Adults Only) rating from the ESRB, and was effectively banned. It's been edited -- but it still looks like a pretty dirty romp to us. This trailer looks absolutely horrible ... and we love it.
Stay tuned for our hands-on impressions.
It looks like Rockstar may have to go back to the drawing board for a second time as the British Board of Film Classification has again rejected Manhunt 2. The first version of the game was rejected by the BBFC in June, which caused Rockstar to tone down the violence before resubmitting it for review.
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