Britain banning sales of 'Manhunt 2'

[Superlative]

Manhunt 2 came under fire Tuesday in United States and Britain, where the government's ratings board banned sales of the title for what it called an "unremitting bleakness and callousness of tone."
By Matt Slagle, Associated Press
An upcoming video game from the maker of the Grand Theft Auto series came under fire Tuesday in United States and Britain, where the government's ratings board banned sales for what it called an "unremitting bleakness and callousness of tone."
Rockstar Games' Manhunt 2 was scheduled for a July 10 release on Nintendo's Wii and Sony.'s PlayStation 2 consoles.

ROCKSTAR GAMES: 'Manhunt 2' site
Players of Manhunt 2 assume the role of an escaped mental institution patient who goes on a killing spree as he fights his way to freedom. It includes special death moves players can perform by moving the Wii's wireless, motion-sensitive controller at just the right moment.

Manhunt 2 is the first game to be banned by the British Board of Film Classification since 1997, when it barred the sale of Carmageddon, in which players rack up points by driving vehicles over pedestrians.

In a statement, BBFC director David Cooke said the board was unable to approve the game because it was "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."

Rockstar spokesman Rodney Walker said Manhunt 2 was meant to be a horror game, something akin to gory films like Saw.

He called the BBFC's decision a form of censorship because the public would never get to decide for itself...

http://www.usatoday.com/tech/gaming/2007-06-19-manhunt2-britain-ban_N.htm?csp=34

 

[mattskramer]

http://www.usatoday.com/tech/gaming/2007-06-19-manhunt2-britain-ban_N.htm?csp=34

Wasn’t the last bit of entertainment banned in the USA “As Nasty As They Wanna Be” by 2 Live Crew? Well, I guess that it is about time for the busy bodies of the nanny state to raise their nasty little heads.

 

[mattskramer]

Wasn’t the last bit of entertainment banned in the USA “As Nasty As They Wanna Be” by 2 Live Crew? Well, I guess that it is about time for the busy bodies of the nanny state to raise their nasty little heads.

Ooops. I checked it out on Wikipedia.com. It looks like it will be allowed in America. I thought that the entertainment industry reached a compromise so that if its stuff had ratings it would not be banned.

I think that I will buy it just for spite. I’ll add it to my collection of banned books.

 

[Superlative]

Im going to buy a 1000 copies, and start a website selling them to Brits.

 

[mattskramer]

Im going to buy a 1000 copies, and start a website selling them to Brits.

That is just one of my soapbox issues. On some topics, I don’t care what happens – I am ambivalent or in my opinion the good points and bad points associated with a particular policy balance each other out. Yet, I have a strong opinion on the issue of banning stuff. I think that the government wastes too much time and takes too much money (in the form of fines and penalties). People should be much more free to create and distribute movies, music, games, etc. as it sees fit.

 

[Superlative]

That is just one of my soapbox issues. On some topics, I don’t care what happens – I am ambivalent or in my opinion the good points and bad points associated with a particular policy balance each other out. Yet, I have a strong opinion on the issue of banning stuff. I think that the government wastes too much time and takes too much money (in the form of fines and penalties). People should be much more free to create and distribute movies, music, games, etc. as it sees fit.

Even if the content is crazy graphic and horribly violent?

What if some sick fuck created a video game targeting the niche market of NAMBLA?

Im not even going to think of details for such a game.

But should the government keep regulating so people wont be tempted to create such things?

 

[mattskramer]

Even if the content is crazy graphic and horribly violent?

What if some sick fuck created a video game targeting the niche market of NAMBLA?

Im not even going to think of details for such a game.

But should the government keep regulating so people wont be tempted to create such things?

Maybe the government should be involved a tiny bit. I’m not an absolutist. If the government should regulate, it should be very infinitesimal. There will always be the mentally unstable who would be influenced by the slightest titillation. Such people should be locked up if they commit crime. I consider myself to be tough on crime - penalty should be severe. That is not a sufficient reason to ban stuff from the vast majority of Americans who are able to tolerate it. Still, all things being considered, I think that the banning such stuff from the vast majority is worse than taking the risk that it might take someone over the edge. Leave regulation up to the individual consumer, parent, or guardian.

 

[Shogun]

I bet this kind of shit gives tipper gore sexual thrills.