Rockstar's Manhunt 2 has been refused a rating certificate by the British Board Of Film Classification (BBFC), meaning that the game is effectively banned in the UK. The original Manhunt was granted an 18 certificate.
David Cook, the director of the BBFC stated:
“Rejecting a work is a very
serious action and one which we do not take lightly. 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.”
This makes Manhunt 2 only the second game to be refused a certificate, Carmageddon was the first. Carmageddon was eventually given a certificate after the makers of the game agreed to make changes to the game.
