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Technology news and Jobs arrow Radioactive IT arrow Manhunt 2 heads to UK shelves, don’t expect it in Australia
Manhunt 2 heads to UK shelves, don’t expect it in Australia E-mail
by Mike Bantick   
Monday, 17 March 2008
After a lengthy, no doubt expensive and much talked about legal battle in UK courts, RockStar Game’s Manhunt 2 will now head to UK retail shelves with the R18+ rating and a great deal of unintentional (perhaps!) press momentum.  Will the same sort of due process occur in Australia?  Don’t count on it Manhunt fans.

RockStar games has vowed to “responsibly” market Manhunt 2 now that the way is clear for the game to hit retail shelves in the UK.

Developed by RockStar London and RockStar North (out of Scotland) the games is a follow-up to the blood thirsty and equally controversial game from 2003.

After spending a turbulent couple of months in litigation, receiving initially a ban from the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) ruling committee for its “unremitting bleakness and callousness of tone”, Manhunt 2 looked set to languish along with former British bannee Carmageddon in 1997.

In steps the UK Video Appeals Committee (VAC) to overturn the BBFC’s decision, awarding an 18+ certificate.

A subsequent appeal by the BBFC to the High Court judged the VAC overturn to be a “clear error of law”.

But a follow up four to three decision by the VAC to ignore the High Court’s directions has paved the way for Manhunt 2 to swan around with an 18+ stamp upon the cover.

“As I have said previously, we never take rejection decisions lightly, and they always involve a complex balance of considerations. We twice rejected Manhunt 2, and then pursued a judicial review challenge, because we considered, after exceptionally thorough examination, that it posed a real potential harm risk,” said BBFC director David Cooke.

“However, the Video Appeals Committee has again exercised its independent scrutiny. It is now clear, in the light of this decision, and our legal advice, that we have no alternative but to issue an ‘18’ certificate to the game,” he added.


 
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