Take Two: Banned video game is 'fine art'

deep - 909 days 15 hours ago

true, but is also true of every adult entertainment. (that is...fictional, or just entertainment).

I still uphold Manhunt as one of the most important games to come to consoles...one that plays with the fine line, but also criticises the direction of modern entertainment...it is slightly ironic of a game which shows a high level of consciousness of the state of entertainment (reality tv etc) that it has been banned by people who uphold this entertainment in other genres. (ok that's not irony, but you know what i mean)

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VirusE - 909 days 15 hours ago

You make a good point. Many of us are responsible adults and could play this game and look at it as just that. Unfortunately the responsible adult to idiotic adult ratio doesn’t favor the responsible adult. Most people are too blind to see how easily influenced they are by things. All one needs to do is look at gangsta rap, bling bling and fame worship fads to realize most people are too dumb to think for themselves. Paris Hilton or eminem could put dog crap in box and sell it for 100 bucks and I think this says a lot about "adults". No matter how you try to spin it people will be take it out of context and people will get hurt.

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deep - 909 days 15 hours ago

I further feel that anyone criticising this game and saying it should be censored have thus entered into the territory of Jack Thomspson and agree with everything he says. DO you (everyone) agree with Jack Thompson?

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ShiftyLookingCow - 909 days 14 hours ago

"I further feel that anyone criticising this game and saying it should be censored have thus entered into the territory of Jack Thomspson and agree with everything he says."

Why resort to some sort of grouping or the other? I bet there are some people who wouldnt mind or care about GTA that are not at all happy with a murder 'simulator'. It gets weird with motion sensing controllers. ESRB is not that bad. Just because Jackass is blind doesnt mean you return in kind.

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-_-_-_-_-_-_- - 909 days 14 hours ago

Hmm, emptiness, you remind me of my friend. he always patronizes everyone around and he always thinks he's the one who knows best what's good for someone and what's not. I find it funny and I always mock him for that.
Anyway, I hope you can make a distinction between your fantasies (that you are an uber-human who knows how other people feel, what do they think and what's good for them) and reality (that other people are just as smart as you are, and can think for themselves just as you can.) Now if Manhunt wouldn't make you kill anyone, why do you think it would make me do it? Whoever can't take this kind of art without replicating it in real life, don't consume it or go to prison.

Sorry about my english emptiness, it's not my native language.

hey, also an important thing emptiness. I've been through war. Real war. i've seen dead people, people without heads, actually, a priest hlding a head of a beheaded civilian, calling for a religious war. I haven't seen rape, but I know many women who were raped, and men also. I was a kid back then, my father was at the front. All that I have seen and heard never made me actually do it. And I've seen a real thing! Now if that haven't made me a killer and rapist (a cynic and atheist yes), how could a video game do it?

And an observation. The people who did rape and kill were all very religious and good people before the war. Just the ones who would be the first to call for Manhunt ban! And when war started, they just went berserk, killing eachother and what not. I guess it was inside of them the whole time, and that's why they needed "false morale" and religion in the first place. To feel clean, because they were aware of their fantasies. Disgusting.

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deep - 909 days 15 hours ago

"I wouldn't for a second compare Manhunt 2 with Se7en, se7en was genius, Manhunt is nothing more than a gorefest, it has nothing "to say" about society"

I disagree whole heartedly. I'm not sure if you were playing the same game as me. But in the game you have been kidnapped by a producer of a reality tv show, and you have to perform for him for the pleasure of him and his viewers. He kills your family, you kill others. You then hunt him down and kill him. This to me is very concsious of society - and especially of entertainment. With shows like Big Brother, and the further extremism of entertainment - to me it felt like a critique. - a critique which made what you were doing very real - it made you FEEL like a murderer...and almost made you feel sick when you were doing it. Name a game that does this similarily...there are many games that have killing in it, but you are completely distanced from it - this game highlights killing and is more serious than War games (COD etc)...something which was completely missed when it was said of the game ""Manhunt 2 is distinguishable from recent high-end video games by its unremitting bleakness and callousness of tone." - that is entirely the point - it is distinguishable, as it DOES NOT distance the player from the violence.

I feel many have completely missed the point. Manhunt is clearly one of the most important games brought to the public. One with intelligent gameplay, and incredible voice acting - an experience which is hard to digest, but an experience I would not have missed.

"whereas most other games give you the CHOICE..." - I've never played a war game where you can walk through without killing people - you always fail.

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tonsoffun - 909 days 15 hours ago

While I agree with the superlative voice acting, I did not rate Manhunt at all- after playing the game I found it nothing more than a sneak 'em up with gore fest fatalities.
The above posts are very well though out and presented. Please don't think I am getting on at you guys but:

While I am against censorship in general, as long as no one is hurt, I can't help but agree with previous posters that manhunt was concieved with nothing but sensationalist overreaction planned - I honestly thought that they went overboard with the violence just for the press.

Also, if the game actually made you feel uneasy and as you have said, then why did you play it? A game for me is something that is fun and enjoyable, if it was neither for you, then whats the point?

And besides, all this 'games are works of art' rubbish - I thought they were supposed to be fun?

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deep - 909 days 9 hours ago

I don't think it's art....whether games or even films are art is a whole other discussion...a discussion which involves definition of what art is and what needs to be afforded to be accepted as it. When this guy says "fine art" - I'm not quite sure what is implied.

I find many games disturbing...and I play them for the experience whether good or bad. I feel games have many more emotions than "I'm having fun" - they can scare you, make you think about your actions, watch with disgust and horror - they can grab your emotions a lot stronger than any film if done well....for it is you doing the actions.

This game is for adults. And it should be allowed for adults to experience - we haven't had a film banned in a very long tim, and I do not understand why games are not afforded the very same justice.

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synless - 909 days 15 hours ago

The whole beheading and having sex with the neck hole thing was a joke on another forum. I don't know why some of you people post things without researching them first.

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deep - 909 days 9 hours ago

Agreed - a serious debate needs to be entered here. Why is Manhunt any different - I still personally feel it is more valuable, as you feel more responsibility when you are killing - and more disturbed.

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