Analysts dissect Manhunt 2 rating
Industry watchers predict whether Take-Two and
Rockstar will tone down the violence in their action sequel or release
it with an Adults Only label.This week, the unreleased action game Manhunt 2 took a beating worthy
of its brutal subject matter. It's only Wednesday, and already the game
has been banned in the UK and Ireland, drawn the ire of a parent watchdog group, and slapped with an AO for Adults Only rating in the US.
With the game's July 10 release date rapidly approaching, Take-Two
Interactive and Rockstar Games will have to decide quickly if they want
to tone down the game and have it rerated, appeal the Entertainment
Software Rating Board to change the rating, or just accept the original
judgment and release the game with the AO label intact.
GameSpot went to a handful of analysts asking for their expectations on
how Take-Two will handle the situation, and found them split on how
they expected the publisher to handle it.
Nollenberger Capital Partners' Todd Greenwald said he expects
the publisher to do what it takes to get the game on the market with an
M for Mature rating.
"Take-Two will have to make some edits--though Rockstar won't
like it--to knock the rating down to Mature," Greenwald said. "AO games
don't sell. They did it with GTA San Andreas after the Hot Coffee
incident. I'd expect them to do it again here. The UK ban I think they
could live with or work around, but I don't think they can launch the
game with an AO rating."
Lazard Capital Markets' Colin Sebastian was a bit less certain
about what the publisher will choose to do, but ultimately thinks
Take-Two will resort to toning down the game.
Read the full article here...Brendan Sinclair
June 20, 2007
Source:
GameSpot