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Manhunt 2 NOT to be released in the UK
APZonerunner
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
The BBFC - who are usually very reasonable - have rejected it's release.
The BBFC are very good and... I actually trust their decision. While I'm sure that many of us can play it just fine, it probably IS too violent for general release. The original Manhunt was, in my opinion, violent for the sake of it and not in a way I found particularly compelling. But whatever. News.
http://www.mcvuk.com/news/27545/BBFC-rejects-Manhunt-2
British Classification body rules Rockstar cannot release upcoming PS2 and Wii sequel in the UK
With Take 2 already in turmoil following the recent company-wide restructuring, the group has been dealt another blow with the news that Rockstar’s upcoming sequel Manhunt 2 has been rejected by the BBFC, meaning it cannot legally be supplied anywhere in the UK.
The only other game to ever be rejected by the body was Carmageddon in 1997, though that decision was overturned by the Video Appeals Committee.
“Rejecting a work is a very serious action and one which we do not take lightly,†BBFC director David Cooke stated. “Where possible we try to consider cuts or, in the case of games, modifications which remove the material which contravenes the Board’s published Guidelines.
“In the case of Manhunt 2 this has not been possible. Manhunt 2 is distinguishable from recent high-end video games by its unremitting bleakness and callousness of tone in an overall game context which constantly encourages visceral killing with exceptionally little alleviation or distancing.
“There is sustained and cumulative casual sadism in the way in which these killings are committed, and encouraged, in the game.
“Although the difference should not be exaggerated the fact of the game’s unrelenting focus on stalking and brutal slaying and the sheer lack of alternative pleasures on offer to the gamer, together with the different overall narrative context, contribute towards differentiating this submission from the original Manhunt game.
“That work was classified ‘18’ in 2003, before the BBFC’s recent games research had been undertaken, but was already at the very top end of what the Board judged to be acceptable at that category.
“Against this background, the Board’s carefully considered view is that to issue a certificate to Manhunt 2, on either platform, would involve a range of unjustifiable harm risks, to both adults and minors, within the terms of the Video Recordings Act, and accordingly that its availability, even if statutorily confined to adults, would be unacceptable to the public.â€
The BBFC are very good and... I actually trust their decision. While I'm sure that many of us can play it just fine, it probably IS too violent for general release. The original Manhunt was, in my opinion, violent for the sake of it and not in a way I found particularly compelling. But whatever. News.
http://www.mcvuk.com/news/27545/BBFC-rejects-Manhunt-2
APZonerunner on
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FFS, give it an 18 and then leave it. Noone below that should be playing it and its a freaking game ><
Sounds like censorship, plain and simple.
I don't understand what you mean by "too violent for general release." I mean, I just don't understand what that means. Not at all.
Steam: Jacobontap
LoL: FutureBlues
(Original was banned in Australia)
Protecting.
Big Brother thinks we shouldn't be allowed to judge for ourselves.
Big Brother will see us right.
Utterly ridiculous decision, when films like Hostel and Hostel 2 make it for general release it baffles me they can knock back a game like this.
PSN: SirGrinchX
Oculus Rift: Sir_Grinch
Should we ban bloody horror movies as well? They're too violent anyway.
U
C
K
What's that spell?
The BBFC are pretty good about how they classify and censor films. Excessive violence without meaning will not get passed, but that really is very rare, the only recent examples of this I can think off were some scenes in Ichi the Killer.
Meh, the BBFC are generally very cool about stuff like this. Stuff like the Japanese verisons of The Ring and Battle Royale which are terribly violent do just fine over here. All this is coming off the back of that thing a while back where that manhunt-obsessed psycho kid killed another one with a spanner.
Most of my indifference is down to my lack of interest in the game, though. I have to admit, if they were banning GTA4 or Dead Rising 2 or something I'd be up in arms like the rest of you.
XBL/PSN/Steam: APZonerunner
Modchips nowadays I -think- will boot imports without any fiddling. The one I did have fitted (I removed it to play Mario Strikers for fear of being banned!) allowed me to play import games but I had to:
Import disc
Rip Disc (pain in arse)
Patch iso
Burn disc.
But I think they do the patching on the fly now, so you should be able to get it modded and just whack in an original import and it'll play.
I'm researching tonight for myself so I'll send you a pm if you like?
PSN: SirGrinchX
Oculus Rift: Sir_Grinch
I'm still looking forward to it on the Wii, I'm surprised there hasn't been more uproar about it really, I suppose with the release being upon us we'll start to hear about it.
I wouldn't want an edited Ichi the Killer.
XBL/PSN/Steam: APZonerunner
that rating is usually restricted for porn only
I've got a modded PS2 already so importing it isn't an issue for that console, but damn it, I wanted the Wii version!
PSN: SirGrinchX
Oculus Rift: Sir_Grinch
I can't find a decent answer to this anywhere, but shouldn't it be possible to play a Wii disc from France, or The Netherlands without modifying the console?
Indeed. The government must think for us and decide what materials are acceptable for me.
The joy of tabloids. What actually happened was a manhunt obsessed killed got killed by another kid.
I strongly disagree with this censorship. I may well be writing to my MP if I can find out how to contact her.
Who is the government made up of?
As long as it gets a PAL release somewhere, it should be easy to import.
I realise that doesn't do anything about the BBFC decision, but there will probably be an appeal.
i don't think the BBFC is a government body
And strictly speaking, the responsibility for enforcing the ratings rests with local authorities. They usually follow the BBFC's ratings, but don't have to if they so choose.
You're whats wrong with the system, buying into crap the press posts. The police said the game was not involved in the murder and it was teh victim who owned it, not the killer. The killer was a junkie who needed money for a fix and killed him with a hammer. Then the victims parents decided to take their grief out on a game they must have bought for him.
Also, to all those who are like 'why is the government thinking for me' you should think long and hard about this game and what its release would mean.
It's no problem whatsoever - I import games from the UK all the time.
except unlike previous videogames who only feature violent themes this game features violent murders that you perform like for like with the Wiimote.
Which, is not a scapegoat it is a legitimate reason for it to be banned.
nb: it is also banned in australia.
*the only exception are those with Nazi symbolism, and even then it might simply be forced off displays
I am wondering what Germany will do - will they just ban the sale to people under the age of 18 or will they make it illegal to sell it at all. And I am pretty sure at least one special bavarian minister of interior will go crazy about that "Killerspiel".
But what about the PS2 version? By your reckoning that should be okay, but that still been banned too.
Besides just because it has waggle doesn't mean it shoould be banned. There is very little reason why anything should be banned. Its just the government (Yes, the BBFC isn't an 'offical' Body but they certainly pander to them) telling us what we can and can't do in the privacy of our own homes.
Where Madness and the Fantasical Come to Play
No that's illegal and carrys a pretty hefty fine from what I remember.
Doesn't Germany have some really wacky criteria for restricting games? I seem to recall something about not being allowed to portray violence against people (they have to be robots, or zombies, or something).
No Nazi symbols in games, as games are not considered art. No exceptions - EA got in deep shit because the packaging of Medal of Honor had screens from the english version.
Edit: Because I am not ordering from germany usually and I am over eighteen anyway, I am not quite sure how it works (law was changed a few years ago). Basically, as far as I remember, the BPjS (Bundesprüfstelle für jugendgefährendende Schriften), same thing as the BFCC, checks every game by watching a "highlight reel" of the violence within, then slaps an age restriction on it. Until a few years ago, there was the possibility that a game was "indiziert" immediately - that means no commercials and no open sale, sale restricted to adults under the counter. Possession was still legal, as was selling to adults. This rarely happens anymore (or at all, as mentioned, law changed and I am not sure), because they got a new rating (basically a MA rating).