Manhunt 2 banned in the UK (both PS2 and Wii versions)

[Madame Adequate]

I laugh at this because you would never guess how often i see second hand copies of Manhunt in Game...and gamestation...oh yeah and at a few of my friends houses.

And yet heroin is still easier to get.

But yeah Manhunt 2 has a pathetic premise anyway so whats the big deal?

Manhunt was a pretty average game. There'd be no real loss to the industry had it never existed; the same is likely to be true of this. That doesn't matter. Nobody has any right to tell an adult what they can and can't spend their money and spare time enjoying.

You can't just not care about something being banned because you personally aren't interested in it. Well, obviously you CAN, but my point is that doing so isn't just dumb, it's outright dangerous.

[Big D]

The censorship laws in commonwealth countries are actually pretty sensible. It's not just a bunch of government guys who get to ban anything they choose to dislike. There's a lot of room for consultation with any interested or affected party. Any decision to prohibit a work is made with 'freedom of speech' as the utmost consideration, and the decision can be challenged through judicial review.

In the case of video games that my country has banned in recent years, for example Manhunt, Postal 2 and Reservoir Dogs, the chief censor's report has made it clear that they were banned because they actively encouraged and rewarded the player for committing acts of simulated violence, with deliberately excessive emphasis on the suffering of the victims.

Every country, regardless of how 'free', has limitations on freedom of speech. It's just a matter of degree.

[Dreddz]

Sony and Nintendo refuse to sell the game in the United States due to the title being AO. Rockstar have to appeal to get the game rated M otherwise they will have to go back and modify the games contents to make it an M rated game. If none of that happens, Manhunt 2 is pretty much banned in the USA as well. Shame.

[CimminyCricket]

I don't understand. ;_; Why are they banning a game? Is it because of violence? There is no way to get out of subjecting the youth to violence. Are they going to ban the news too? Movies? Television?

[Mirage]

no, it's because you can do violent acts for fun.

[CimminyCricket]

So wait, are they going to ban boxing? Wrestling? What about boxing games? Rugby is pretty violent, and it looks fun, are they going to ban that too?

[Mirage]

I wouldn't mind, I hate sports games :D.

[CimminyCricket]

Nor do I xD

[Roto13]

I think all Rockstar games should be banned because they're all just controversy for the sake of free publicity and that sucks.

Boo on censorship, though. Even if the game is pure unadulterated crap like the last one, people with no taste should be allowed to play it anyway.

[Zante]

...Nobody has any right to tell an adult what they can and can't spend their money and spare time enjoying...

I was going to post how I agree with this point, but on second though...
What if someone made a game that promotes racism? Or one where you play out the holocaust? I think there is a line even for free speech. I haven't actually played Manhunt so I can't say if it crosses that line, but I wouldn't say they had no right to ban it.

[Dreddz]

Manhunt was a pretty average game. There'd be no real loss to the industry had it never existed; the same is likely to be true of this. That doesn't matter. Nobody has any right to tell an adult what they can and can't spend their money and spare time enjoying.

Manhunt was a decent game, look past all the violence theres a quality stealth game in there. Manhunt 2 may even surpass the original in more aspects than the violence. So its sad to see a potentially good game pulled from the market.

And to be honest, all the media the game has been getting means it would of probably sold quite a bit because people will want to see what the fuss is about.

[JKTrix]

The game is being banned because beyond all the brutal killing and stuff, there's...nothing. All you do (as far as I've read) is stalk and kill people in pretty brutal ways.

The ESRB's ratings for M and AO are as follows:

M: Titles rated M (Mature) have content that may be suitable for persons ages 17 and older. Titles in this category may contain intense violence, blood and gore, sexual content and/or strong language.

AO: Titles rated AO (Adults Only) have content that should only be played by persons 18 years and older. Titles in this category may include prolonged scenes of intense violence and/or graphic sexual content and nudity.

San Andreas became rated AO after Hot Coffee because of that. Manhunt obviously falls more on the prolonged intense violence side.

If this was coming on the Xbox, wouldn't be that big of a deal. Sure, you still can't sell it at Wal-mart (apparently where the most games are sold in the US), but at least your game can exist. In Nintendo and Sony's case, they don't allow AO games on their systems at all.

[Big D]

So wait, are they going to ban boxing? Wrestling? What about boxing games? Rugby is pretty violent, and it looks fun, are they going to ban that too?

No, it's not just because "it's violent". It's because of the overwhelming emphasis and focus on the violent infliction of sadistic cruelty.

It's a matter of degree, not an absolute. It's not "all violence is bad, so it all has to be banned." It's a case-by-case matter: "is the violence, in this instance, so extreme and dealt with in such a way, that it warrants the prohibition of the title?"

In Nintendo and Sony's case, they don't allow AO games on their systems at all.

I find this pretty weird, since plenty of game are legally restricted to over-18s, in a lot of countries. But Sony and Nintendo will pull any title that gets the equivalent rating in North America? Quite a strange system, in my opinion.

[Mirage]

Agreed. It would also make many adult gamers lean towards getting an MS system rather than a Sony system. Bad business tactics if you ask me.

[Odaisé Gaelach]

So wait, are they going to ban boxing? Wrestling? What about boxing games? Rugby is pretty violent, and it looks fun, are they going to ban that too?

Oh, come on! That's immature and petty. The BBFC look at lots of things when they're rating a film or a game. This isn't a decision that's been taken lightly.

Boxing games are violent, but they're not sadistic. You're trying to hurt your opponent, but you're never asked to kill them. Neither are you torturing them.

Look, go to the BBFC Student's website. It's got loads of information on how the BBFC classify games and movies - and it's actually quite fascinating.