14 DAY TRIAL // Wow, talk about fast! Take-Two and Rockstar are seriously taking this Manhunt 2 issue into their hands! Apparently, as the BBFC and ESRB have rated the game to nonexistence (in stores that is), the game's developer has immediately started up work on it, to appeal the rating boards. As you can see, the game is undergoing a severe revamping, in an effort to change the boards' perspective on violent video games.
Just a week ago (or so), Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter predicted a loss of just one million bucks and a few months of delay for the release of Manhunt 2: "They will probably spend $1 million or so to rework the game," he said. "They will not have revenue from the game this quarter (ending July), so they will likely miss their guidance, but will make up most of it in a future quarter when the game is released."
Luckily, the developers have already started taking the matter into their own hands and just so the world could know that they're not taking their time in revamping the game... well, check the images to the left (courtesy of Geek Rising, via Go Nintendo). Honestly man, do I really have to tell you that they're fake?
Nice thought though. Hopefully, the game will see a revamping within the following months and hopefully again, the rating boards will see Manhunt 2 with better eyes. However, having seen what Rockstar had intended to throw on the gaming market, they'll probably have a hard time forgetting all the 'cumulative casual sadism' that was present in the original version. One more thing and I'm out of here.
Despite the fact that British and Irish censors have banned Manhunt 2, citing an unacceptable level of "gratuitous violence" and "sadism" occurring within the game, Take-Two Chairman Strauss Zelnick confirmed his full support, as far as Mahunt 2 was concerned, stating that parents and consumers should be able to make their own choices once they have been informed about a product. More than that, the man reckoned the Manhunt 2 is a piece of 'art':
"The Rockstar team has come up with a game that fits squarely within the horror genre and was intended to do so," Zelnick said in a statement, according to Reuters. "It brings a unique, formerly unheard of cinematic quality to interactive entertainment, and is also a fine piece of art," he said.
He must have had these pictures on his desk when he said that...