Manhunt 2 The Controversial (Wii) Review is up 92%

First (truncated) review excerptsonly

"We're certainly not of the opinion that Wii is a family-friendly box piping Nintendo goodness directly into the living rooms of grannies and toddlers around the country. Given the number of times we've strangled for pennies in The Godfather and kneecapped for fun in Resi 4, we have bloody and conclusive evidence to the contrary. Nintendo has long since stopped beating third-party developers with its censor-stick.

But this... we can't help but be slightly taken aback by its appearance on a Nintendo console. Not surprised, and certainly not shocked, but perhaps a little - excited? - to see the bright white Wii menu fade into the darkness of what is indisputably the most gruesome videogame we've ever played on any platform."

"A lot of people are going to be offended by it, for its copious violence and occasional sex scene, and somebody, somewhere is going to get a shock when they walk in on a friend laterally bisecting a hunter's head with realistic sawing motions. Manhunt 2 is what Wii's parental controls are for. The sticker on the box says it's for over 18s only and, believe us, it's not wrong.

"We've deliberately avoided talking about the game's more grisly excesses because these things are best discovered for yourself. You'll wince, you'll jump, you may even laugh at times, but we can guarantee you'll never forget it." The magazine gave the Wii version an impressive...

92%.

Second opinion from another reviewer (same mag)

"The brilliant thing about this and the original manhunt is that it feels like a proper old fashioned game. Skulking around in the shadows, waiting for the right moment to pop out and muderise your enemy, isn't just hauntingly scary - it's a test of observation, reactions, timing and dexterity as finely crafted in it's own way as any nintendo developed game. A grown up game for grown up people and as essential a play as zelda and RE4"

There are also two previews from EDGE and GamesTM magazine here in full on my blog, which I typed up.

EDGE preview:

"After playing Toronto's conversion it's clear that it will be the pick of the bunch and not just because of its persistent progressive scan blood spatter and the extra layer of grimy conviction to its visuals. Wii manhunt 2s elaborated controls make it slightly harder and considerably more viscerally involving from its PS2 sibling."

GamesTM preview:

"If more third parties can take inspiration from Manhunt 2's measured use of the wii's capabilities then the consoles software line-up will strengthen week upon week. And if not, we're still left with what will surely be the definitive version of a nasty, vile and utterly compelling piece of digital entertainment. Review next month."

This game is banned in:

1. The UK
2. Ireland and almost certainly...
3. Germany
4. Australia and NZ?

Thread of banning here. :(

"and somebody, somewhere is going to get a shock when they walk in on a friend laterally bisecting a hunter's head with realistic sawing motions."

haha, good stuff.

I'm looking forward to this game and have quite high hopes for it, and this only strengthens that hope.

This game is going to flip System Wars on its head. This game takes thewhole "Nintendo is kiddie" arguement tosses it out the window, kicks it into the street, and the takes a chainsaw to its crotch.

That 92% is a nice review though. I'm not familiar enough with the source to really get a feel of what that rating means, but it is a good sign that the game has a little bit more to it than just the controversy.

This game is going to get so much press that's going to sell by the bundle wherever it's actually released, Hopefully it won't get an AO rating in NA though or retailer's will refuse to carry it.

[QUOTE="jedigemini"]

This game is going to get so much press that's going to sell by the bundle wherever it's actually released, Hopefully it won't get an AO rating in NA though or retailers will refuse to carry it.

dvader654

Unless there is sex involved, no amount of violence is going to get it an AO here.

But it should. Shooting aliens with pink needles is not the same as realistically garotting a human being, and yet the games featuring those things are rated the same. There have to be more AO ratings given out.

[QUOTE="gaminggeek"]Apparently there is a sexual scene..dvader654

AO rating. Main topic of debate in thenext political debates, main platform for Hilary Clinton, she becomes President, all games banned forever.

Dammit we are screwed.

Anyways, are you serious about hilary clinton? That's pretty extreme. That would almostbe communism....

[QUOTE="11Marcel"][QUOTE="dvader654"]

[QUOTE="gaminggeek"]Apparently there is a sexual scene..dvader654

AO rating. Main topic of debate in thenext political debates, main platform for Hilary Clinton, she becomes President, all games banned forever.

Dammit we are screwed.

Anyways, are you serious about hilary clinton? That's pretty extreme. That would almostbe communism....

I'm joking of course... or am I... dum dum dum...

No seriously, I would actually deem it possible. After seeing what bush got away with...

Second opinion from another reviewer (same source)

"The brilliant thing about this and the original manhunt is that it feels like a proper old fashioned game. Skulking around in the shadows, waiting for the right moment to pop out and muderise your enemy, isn't just hauntingly scary - it's a test of observation, reactions, timing and dexterity as finely crafted in it's own way as any nintendo developed game. A grown up game for grown up people and as essential a play as zelda and RE4"

Second opinion from another reviewer (same source)

"The brilliant thing about this and the original manhunt is that it feels like a proper old fashioned game. Skulking around in the shadows, waiting for the right moment to pop out and muderise your enemy, isn't just hauntingly scary - it's a test of observation, reactions, timing and dexterity as finely crafted in it's own way as any nintendo developed game. A grown up game for grown up people and as essential a play as zelda and RE4"

gaminggeek

Wow! That quote really has me hyped for the game.

Second opinion from another reviewer (same source)

"The brilliant thing about this and the original manhunt is that it feels like a proper old fashioned game. Skulking around in the shadows, waiting for the right moment to pop out and muderise your enemy, isn't just hauntingly scary - it's a test of observation, reactions, timing and dexterity as finely crafted in it's own way as any nintendo developed game. A grown up game for grown up people and as essential a play as zelda and RE4"

gaminggeek

Thoseare strong words. Very strong words really. Not that I wasn't already planning on getting the game, but if this guy is a valid reviewing source it may be a game to pick up when it ships. I'm going to have to look in on this guys other reviews.

First (truncated) review excerpts here 92%

There are also two previews from EDGE and GamesTM magazine here in my blog, which I typed up.

"This game is banned in:

1. The UK
2. Ireland and almost certainly...
3. Germany
4. Australia and NZ?

Thread ofbanning here. :(

gaminggeek

almost a certainty... i actually dont have much anticipation for the gamefor its content really so i dont really mind but to see it techinically workable isgood enough for me

[QUOTE="gaminggeek"]

Second opinion from another reviewer (same source)

"The brilliant thing about this and the original manhunt is that it feels like a proper old fashioned game. Skulking around in the shadows, waiting for the right moment to pop out and muderise your enemy, isn't just hauntingly scary - it's a test of observation, reactions, timing and dexterity as finely crafted in it's own way as any nintendo developed game. A grown up game for grown up people and as essential a play as zelda and RE4"

Robio_basic

Thoseare strong words. Very strong words really. Not that I wasn't already planning on getting the game, but if this guy is a valid reviewing source it may be a game to pick up when it ships. I'm going to have to look in on this guys other reviews.

Mark Green, Editor of NGamer, previous writer/editing duties on N64 and NGC magazines. The writer of the main review is Martin Kitts, again long time veteren of those series of magazines.

Magwebsite here.

[QUOTE="jedigemini"]

This game is going to get so much press that's going to sell by the bundle wherever it's actually released, Hopefully it won't get an AO rating in NA though or retailer's will refuse to carry it.

dvader654

Unless there is sex involved, no amount of violence is going to get it an AO here.

Didn't Indigo Prophecy have a sex scene? I can't see that get AO over the pond. Think it got +15 in Norway.

[QUOTE="dvader654"][QUOTE="jedigemini"]

This game is going to get so much press that's going to sell by the bundle wherever it's actually released, Hopefully it won't get an AO rating in NA though or retailer's will refuse to carry it.

TheTerribleFish

Unless there is sex involved, no amount of violence is going to get it an AO here.

Didn't Indigo Prophecy have a sex scene? I can't see that get AO over the pond. Think it got +15 in Norway.

Hype does wonders. I'm getting more hyped up by seeing you guys hype it up than I was before.

I might have to get it just to add diversity to my Wii library. I have Zelda and Metal Slug. Gonna get RE4 (already own it for GC). Now I need something more... extreme. :P But I'm not sure I'll be able to play it at home. It's gonna be something I close my door to my seven-year-old sister for, that's for sure.

BTW, if I can't find it in any store and don't preorder it, how can I get it? Would a game store order it for me, or would I get it directly from the publisher, or what?

BTW, if I can't find it in any store and don't preorder it, how can I get it? Would a game store order it for me, or would I get it directly from the publisher, or what?

Angry_Beaver

Well, it's still a little bit too early to tell what is going to happen at the moment because Take Two is still looking at all available options. From what I hear Nintendo will not allow a game that is rated AO to come out on its console so expect a delay if they decide to tone down some things. I hope that isn't the case, though. Nevertheless, I would think your easiest way to get it(if by chance is does come out as AO) is off the internet.

Frankly im not interested in Manhunt in the slightest. Altho I am a little surprised by the 92% score this mag gave it. Was more expecting it to be a very gruesome violent game that only attracted a certain type of gamer. Guess we will just have to wait and see when more reviews come out. But the fact still remains, it wont sell well at all currently. Already banned in 4 countries and currently has an AO rating here in the states (altho that is still subject to change) wich means next to no retail chains will even stock it. Not sure how many people were into the original Manhunt, but I doubt they're are enough diehard manhunt fans to keep the game afloat on their own.

If they change the game a bit to make it fit into a M rating, id be curious to see how much it sells here, or how much of a commotion it stirs up with people.

That's awesome man.

I just got back from Game crazy and the manager hadn't even heard about the adults only rating yet. He's not even sure that they'll be carrying the game now, which is total and complete BS.

If a game recieving an official rating is refused to be stocked at retail, that's basically BANNING the game. Its censorship, no matter how you look at it.
So, how are we supposed to get a damn copy if you can't get it anywhere?

More than that, I think this rating is really a slap in the face to mature game players in general. It says that they're not confident enough in the regular MATURE rating, of retail stores, and of the general public at large, to be able to be responsible enough to handle this game.

Guess what everyone? We have a new babysitter.

I read that M rating is for 17 and up, AO for 18 and up? What? gaminggeek

Because in that span of time between 17 and 18, you are less likely to go on a killing spree after playing Manhunt, apparently. 8)

I read that M rating is for 17 and up, AO for 18 and up? What? gaminggeek

That's correct. In order to be able to purchase AO rated gamees you need to be 18 whereas you need to be 17 for M rated games.

It's that one year time span where people actually learn to make an educated decision. :roll:

Now if you will excuse me I think the Tony video game has just received a new rating as well. I am glad I am old enough to purchase it.

Isn't the comparison of M to AO exactly analogous to the comparison of NC-17 and R in movie ratings? It's one of the dumbest things....Angry_Beaver

With games, since it's not like there's some public venue for such things, this really makes the whole premise of the two ratings much less meaningful, as others indicated.

[QUOTE="jedigemini"]

This game is going to get so much press that's going to sell by the bundle wherever it's actually released, Hopefully it won't get an AO rating in NA though or retailer's will refuse to carry it.

dvader654

Unless there is sex involved, no amount of violence is going to get it an AO here.

Not True.

The developers of THQ's The Punisher had to tone down the gore and add filter screens during toture/interrogation scenes.

The ESRB threatened to label the game AO if they didn't lower the gore a bit.

BS.

If a game recieving an official rating is refused to be stocked at retail, that's basically BANNING the game. Its censorship, no matter how you look at it.
EdgecrusherAza

No Aza, that's the retailer making a conscious decision not to stock the game, that's not censorship.

Apparently there is a sexual scene..gaminggeek

Yeah but probably not on the same level as what you would find in an adult movie. So long as its not really hardcore sex where certain aspects of the act are visible, I could not see the game getting an AO rating, that would be like making a movie like The Devils Advocate an XXX film because it has one scene with a chick stripping in it, or pretty much any other film that has nudity, sometimes there is sex involved in them and no one asks why they arent rated higher then R or 18+. Obviously Manhunt 2 is not for kids, and the game should get a Mature rating, however I think Rockstar should have to put a warning label on the front of the box listing all the violent things, it would certainly knock some sense into the parents who would let their kids play violent games. However I think all games should be like that to be honest, the boxlisting the content in the game should be on the front of the box as well as the back, and it should be in a much bigger font imo.

If people want to draw parents and kids away from Mature rated games, then something needs to be changed about how it is displayed and promoted. I guarantee you will never see a commercial on for Manhunt 2 before 9 or10 pm if it does get advertised on TV, and I think Grand Theft Auto, Halo or any mature rated game should get the same treatment.

[QUOTE="gaminggeek"]Apparently there is a sexual scene..DSgamer64

Yeah but probably not on the same level as what you would find in an adult movie. So long as its not really hardcore sex where certain aspects of the act are visible, I could not see the game getting an AO rating, that would be like making a movie like The Devils Advocate an XXX film because it has one scene with a chick stripping in it, or pretty much any other film that has nudity, sometimes there is sex involved in them and no one asks why they arent rated higher then R or 18+. Obviously Manhunt 2 is not for kids, and the game should get a Mature rating, however I think Rockstar should have to put a warning label on the front of the box listing all the violent things, it would certainly knock some sense into the parents who would let their kids play violent games. However I think all games should be like that to be honest, the boxlisting the content in the game should be on the front of the box as well as the back, and it should be in a much bigger font imo.

If people want to draw parents and kids away from Mature rated games, then something needs to be changed about how it is displayed and promoted. I guarantee you will never see a commercial on for Manhunt 2 before 9 or10 pm if it does get advertised on TV, and I think Grand Theft Auto, Halo or any mature rated game should get the same treatment.

That's a good idea, Conker on the box had that label. I think its pretty sad that most mainstream retailers won't sell AO games that's my main beef here. What happens if GTA IV gets the same treatment with an AO rating? I'm pretty sure that won't stop GS/EBgames from selling the game at least them. Hopefully this could pave way in retailers to "man up" and finally start selling AO games, at least some of them.

Not to trivialise the posts above, because I read and agree with most of them, but since I am an adult I don't care what letters the ESRB puts on the cover of my games.

I do agree that the whole video game rating system is absolutely ludicrous and in no way consistent with any other content rating system and that politicions on the left and right use this as a fundraising tool, and that maybe some game companies curb their artisitc choices because they have the ESRB in mind (E rated games sell consistently better than the others).

http://www.gamespot.com/news/6172830.html?action=convert&om_clk=latestnews&tag=latestnews;title;0

Oh my after reading that, how is the gaming industry going to take itself as a serious adult entertainment hobby when Sony, Nintendo, MS won't allow AO on their system? :| yet they want to reach "all type of audiences" :roll:

http://www.gamespot.com/news/6172830.html?action=convert&om_clk=latestnews&tag=latestnews;title;0

Oh my after reading that, how is the gaming industry going to take itself as a serious adult entertainment hobby when Sony, Nintendo, MS won't allow AO on their system? :| yet they want to reach "all type of audiences" :roll:

D3s7rUc71oN

Make our own. With so much engines release under LGPL, we can guarantee make an AO game and release as is.

That AO policy has been there for a while. Thats what I was saying on the other thread, we will never see the AO version of the game, it has to go in for editing.dvader654

I knew that Nintendo might have had that policy but I thought SOny had some AO rated games. It also mentioned Microsoft had that same policy for its console but I thought there were AO rated games on it as well. Maybe I live in a fantasy land.

:o oh look! *notices GodModeEnabled* What are you doing here in this land of fantasy?

Personally, I happen to think that both Manhunt 1 and 2 were important games that needed to made for the advancement of Computer/video gaming as a media, and art.

Manhunt 1 is important because it shows just how far the bar can be pushed in terms of gore and violence.

Manhunt 2 shows where that bar is crossed. (basing this on reports, obviously I've not seen the game to know how bad it is)

Knowing the point where decency is ultimately crossed and responsibility with that knowledge is important for an artist and an artform of any kind. Few are truly going to care about some artist's profound statement is virtually everyone is offended and thusly pushed away, even if it "offending everyone" was the point in the first place.

i enjoyed bloody and gory games just like everyone else but they keep pushing the limits, and they finally went beyond the limit with manhunt 2. camouflage47

If you don't like the concept, fine, but I don't feel fine getting upset about the game's content without actually knowing/seeing the content myself. This is like people complaining about Killer7 having some level of an explicit 'sex scene,' which turned out to be tame in the end.

...but I don't feel fine getting upset about the game's content without actually knowing/seeing the content myself. Skylock00

That's something that seems to appear repeatedly through this issue, none of us has actually seen enough gameplay footage, let alone having actually experienced the game, and you have people saying "oh, Rockstar really crossed the line this time, no wonder why the game got an AO", what line? If the ESRB didn't actually play the game, what criteria did they use to label this game the way they did?

EDIT: There's a space eating spirit within GameSpot's forums.

Well problemswith video gamebanningcan easily be swayed by one thing, an official, organized petition. The only problem is that there isnt a large number of people ready to do it. While every video gamer is busy posting on a forum or playing....well video games, irresponsible parents and other anti-videogamer peopleare getting their word out through court room hearings, legislation, newspapers, and other media which are the real focus point of most officials (which is were Sony etc. made their decision to band it).

Here's a thought, try treating problems like these like when they tried to ban drinking lol. It never happened, and it was only a drink :P

Personally, I happen to think that both Manhunt 1 and 2 were important games that needed to made for the advancement of Computer/video gaming as a media, and art.

Manhunt 1 is important because it shows just how far the bar can be pushed in terms of gore and violence.

Manhunt 2 shows where that bar is crossed. (basing this on reports, obviously I've not seen the game to know how bad it is)

Knowing the point where decency is ultimately crossed and responsibility with that knowledge is important for an artist and an artform of any kind. Few are truly going to care about some artist's profound statement is virtually everyone is offended and thusly pushed away, even if it "offending everyone" was the point in the first place.

armouredpriest

Based on what I said about the Jihad, there are no limits or boundaries as to freedom of speech. There was a movie recently released on DVD about assasinating our president, yet it was still released.

i enjoyed bloody and gory games just like everyone else but they keep pushing the limits, and they finally went beyond the limit with manhunt 2. now jack will have more support than ever. im actually starting to see his point. "well movies and books are more violent than video games!" video games are interactive. stop and think with an open mind. do we really want children killing other humans in video games all the time? whats wrong with all fps and tps being paintball sims? call of duty can be a paintball sim at the local range with a ww2 theme, ect. we shouldn't be killing people in video games. they should get shot with in game paintballs and show them just sitting there. hack n slash games could use wooden swords and the ones that lose can just sit down. something has to be done. manhunt 2 has started the beginning of the end of violent video games. socker moms around the world will join jack and nintendo, sony, micro will go along with it. its not such a bad thing really. we will get used to it in order to improve our socity.camouflage47

How in the hell is that going to improve society?

"and somebody, somewhere is going to get a shock when they walk in on a friend laterally bisecting a hunter's head with realistic sawing motions."

haha, good stuff.

I'm looking forward to this game and have quite high hopes for it, and this only strengthens that hope.

metroid_dragon

92%?? Did they radically change the gameplay from the first one? If you've ever played the original Manhunt, you'll know that it's just a gimmick game. It's fun to watch all of the violent ways you can dispose of some folks with, but after you've seen the animations, there's not much left in the tank. It was fun for a few hours as a budget title, but as a full price game?? No way.

So, either they made some major changes to this one to improve it over the original, or it's the usual pre-release payola reviews that go on far too often. We'll have to wait and see.

[QUOTE="camouflage47"]i enjoyed bloody and gory games just like everyone else but they keep pushing the limits, and they finally went beyond the limit with manhunt 2. Skylock00

If you don't like the concept, fine, but I don't feel fine getting upset about the game's content without actually knowing/seeing the content myself. This is like people complaining about Killer7 having some level of an explicit 'sex scene,' which turned out to be tame in the end.

There has been some gruesome details in the GAF thread.