Lord forbid, this will be the last Manhunt 2 news story any of us will have to endure.

Manhunt 2 has constantly been refused a rating in the UK by the British Board of Film Classification, effectively banning it from release, by Rockstar are still determined to see it hit UK store shelves. Thanks to the common sense of the Video Appeals Committee, it might actually happen this time.

After studying evidence for and against the banning of the game, the Video Appeals Committee panel announced today that it had decided four-three in favour of Rockstar Games, and that the game should receive a classification and be released in the UK.

Despite the decision, the BBFC seems to be obsessively determined to see that the game isn't released in the UK. "We need to review the written judgement to see if there are any grounds for judicial appeal to the High Court," said a BBFC representative. "If we don't see any grounds, we will grant it a certificate."

If there track record is anything to go by, they will likely attempt to find any possible loophole in an attempt to see the game being blocked from retail.

David Cooke, director of the BBFC, commented in a statement, "The BBFC will carefully study the judgement by the Video Appeals Committee when it becomes available. The BBFC twice rejected Manhunt 2 for its focus on varied and cumulative killings. We recognize that rejection is a very serious step, in which the desire of publishers to market their games, and that of gamers to buy them, must be balanced against the public interest, including the full range of possible harm risks to vulnerable individuals and to any children who may be wrongly exposed to such games. Such balancing judgements are inevitably complex and multifaceted and are made only after very careful consideration of the contents of a work."

Rockstar, not surprisingly, are a lot more excited about the Video Appeals Committee decision. Take-Two chairman Strauss Zelnick commented, "We are committed to making great interactive entertainment while also marketing our products responsibly and supporting an effective rating system. We are pleased that the decision of the VAC has recognized that Manhunt 2 is well within the bounds established by other 18-plus rated entertainment."

Tags : appeal : BBFC : British Board of Film Classification : censorship : David Cooke : manhunt : manhunt 2 : playstation 2 : playstation portable : rockstar : rockstar games : Strauss Zelnick : take two interactive : uk : Wii

Comments

By: Dragonsoul On: 09:52 Dec 11th, 2007 Offline	Good grief, this is like a soap opera. Give the game a big hefty warning sign and then release it already. If the parents ain't fucking up with their kids regarding this they'll mess up somewhere us, trust me. You can't make games idiot-proof, after all.

By: Evren On: 10:04 Dec 11th, 2007 Offline	Jesus, Cant they just get on with releasing it please. I dont need to be babied Kthnx. Instead, stop a bunch of retard parents, buying them for thier retard children.