Manhunt 2 Debate Benefits All Concerned
I don’t get all the fuss. I really don’t. Every time I see a headline plastered with some raving slogan in support of, or railing against, Manhunt 2, I quickly press delete before my brain even has a chance to formulate the usual “oh god, not that again…” response. We’re not even flogging a dead horse anymore, we’re fileting it, grilling it, and serving it as little horse-burger sandwiches with chipotle sauce and onion. Bad breath, indigestion, and a total lack of sensibility follow soon after.
Yessss, I’ve watched the trailers and yessss, I followed the kerfuffle in the early days of the game’s AO rating. From my perspective, it’s just a stupid game made by folks trying to be sensationalist, depraved assholes. Just because you can do something, doesn’t mean that you should, and from the footage of Manhunt 2 that I saw, this was definitely a should not. It was violent, offensive, and nasty just for the sake of being so. For a major studio to produce such a marvel and expect to retail it next to the likes of Beautiful Katamari, Super Paper Mario, and was a bit unrealistic.
But hey, that was the decision their management made when they green-lit the project. A decision that I wish was never made, so that I would no longer have to filter out the squabbling, back-biting wank that is clogging my feed reader. Bad game? Yes. Too violent? Perhaps. Damaging “…the reputation of the industry as a whole, long term. ” Pffft. Get over yourselves.
Manhunt 2 has been the whipping boy for the rest of the industry, most of whom are eager to distance themselves from notions of gaming violence in the wake of the socio-political backlash against the industry around the world. How better to return your angelic glow as an entertainment provider, than to jump on the bandwagon and denounce your rival as a purveyor of material that is not representative of the overall sentiment in the industry?
There will be no end to this debate, simply because it’s keeping everybody happy. Rockstar has its press, the industry has its pariah, and the politicians have a platform aid for upcoming elections. Horse-burgers are currently on everyone’s menu and everyone is content wolfing them down, including journalists, as this is how easy copy is made.
If the game is AO, then it’s AO, and only those old enough to play it should be able to buy it. Makes sense to me. Don’t bring freedom of expression, censorship, or any other rally cry of the oppressed into this. The rating systems are there for a reason, and if you really sit back and think of a 9 year old playing that particular game, perhaps you’ll understand that. All of us spouting off about the cruel restrictive regulations are old enough to go out and get the game for our own enjoyment if we so choose.
Horse-burgers!!
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POSTED IN: Musings, Things That Suck
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