Hackers Unlock Hidden "Manhunt 2" Violence

Video Game's Publisher Had Censored Violent Content To Earn Marketable Rating

(AP)  Hackers have unlocked violent content that was censored by the publisher of the game "Manhunt 2" to give it a marketable rating, the company confirmed Thursday.

The game, initially given an "Adults Only" rating by the Entertainment Software Rating Board, went on sale in the U.S. on Wednesday with a "Mature" rating, after being modified. Most stores refuse to carry "Adults Only" games; Mature means a game is intended for player 17 or older.

Game publisher Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. and the studio that designed the game, Rockstar Games, have long been at the center of the debate over video game violence and children.

Two years ago, a hacker uncovered a hidden sex scene in their game "Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas."

In "Manhunt 2," the player takes the role of a man who escapes from an insane asylum and goes on a killing spree.

Take-Two edited parts of the game, including blurring some of the most gruesome killing scenes, to get the less restrictive rating.

Hackers defeated that blurring on the version of the game for Sony Corp.'s PlayStation Portable. The game is also available for the PlayStation 2 and Nintendo Wii systems, and those versions do not appear to have been hacked.

The hack does not roll back all the changes that enabled the game to qualify for the "Mature" rating, and it requires some technical expertise and a PSP unit that is itself hacked to accept modified software.

But Common Sense Media, a San Francisco nonprofit that advises parents about entertainment that may be inappropriate for children, Thursday asked the Federal Trade Commission to look into the ratings process, now funded and governed by an industry association. The process lacks basic transparency, Common Sense Media CEO James Steyer said in a statement.

"We believe that families and all consumers should have an assurance from game publishers and the game ratings board that the content being advertised is the same as the content being sold," Steyer said.

In the Grand Theft Auto incident, the ratings board changed the game's rating from "Mature" to "Adults Only" and retailers pulled it off shelves.

Since then, the board has required that publishers submit even hidden content for review, and Take-Two spokesman Ed Nebb said the publisher had followed that requirement for "Manhunt 2."

It is unclear whether the private, nonprofit ratings board considered the hidden material in assigning the "M" rating to "Manhunt 2."

Board spokesman Eliot Mizrachi said only that it is aware of the hacking issue and is looking into it.

Both the revised and original versions of "Manhunt 2" were banned by the American ratings board's British counterpart.

"I stand behind the game and the ESRB ratings process," Take-Two Chairman Strauss Zelnick said in a statement. "It is unfortunately the case that no one in the entertainment software industry is immune from hacking. We hope that consumers will not engage in hacking or download illegally modified copies of our games."

[michellem99-2009]

Yer have net acess..Look it up and read about it Mum/Dad. Yer the ones buying the games..Yes there are unfit parents. Ye can''t them.

[dredre2k]

Oh come on, video games don''t need to be censored... Parents need to take responsibility to NOT BUY THE GAMES for their kids or to not allow the game in the the home. Kids are going to see violent movies, ***, etc. out of the house so the best thing a parent can do is to take responsibility in the home over what their child plays. Parents now-a-days rely on others to control what their kids are consuming... no one wants to take responsibility for themselves.

[zyisis]

Videogames are played by all ages my mom plays and she is 57 so don''t tell me they were just made for kids. And as far as children getting a hold of games with higer rateings their parents should pay attention. They should know what they are playing and should be involved. To many parents these days don''t pay attentions to their kids.

[excelsior9]

They are not fooling me. They made this game for kids not "mature adults". Lets face it, who is actually going to play this game. Its all about $$. They need to show some corparate responsibility and not subject our youth to this garbage.

[Wookiee-1138]

Dr. Phil ranks just above Dr. Suess in quackhood.

[tiredofthebs]

The nerve of Rockstar .... exposing gruesome images like that to children. Who do they think they are ?! The Media ???!!! (LMAO)

[pakaal]

takacscj wrote: "as a parent, and knowing the challenges of parenting in the present environment, I would like as much help as possible... Individual rights (free speech) need to be balanced with group rights (not be assaulted with objectionable material).
Posted by at 12:39 PM : Nov 02, 2007

I understand parents are looking for support in a world of constant media/commercial barrage, but ''being assaulted with objectionable material'' is overstating the situation in this case - not only is the game in question clearly marked with a rating, the ''ultraviolent content'' on it can only be accessed by modifying both the game and the console. Can we ask parents to check the rating on the game, and tell their kids not to hack their games and game machines? I don''t think that''s a lot to ask.

Side note: Psych studies show that these games are played by those who do NOT typically show violent behavior. Conversely, violent criminals don''t typically play these kinds of games. This is fantasy, not to be confused with reality.

[drrc1]

It seems that it is high time for censorhip!

[grammawhamma]

So Adults Only rating is for 18 years and up and Mature is for 17 years and up. What a difference twelve months makes.

[johnny_chaos]

nggr? nice handle. your right, as long as someone is dumb enough to buy it, someone will sell it. but admittedly lot of these games aren%u2019t even worth playing. Remember soldier of fortune 2? The gore was funny for maybe five minutes, but the game sucked. its the reaction that gets the kids interested in the first place. Don%u2019t feed the fire, it will die out fairly quickly left to stand on its own merits.

[johnny_chaos]

Doh, life size child *** dolls? cop targets? lol. well, as far as the child dolls, perfect place for those that cant tell the difference between reality and a game to go work out their fantasies. Anyway, how long did it take you to dream those up? A lonely night in the rest room remembering maybe? If only they made a little Donnie doll%u2026 and as far as the targets, with just the slightest creativity you can make any target you heart desires, so, buying either child *** dolls or cop targets is a great way for law enforcement to track nut jobs.

This game is lame anyway, its only selling point is the violence and peoples reaction to it. If it wasn%u2019t marketed on every cable news show, who would actually care? Rockstar counts on you censurer minded types to make a crappy title seem edgy. its just more of the same from them, digital one trick ponies counting on offending people to create a market.

[takacscj]

True, we all know parents have significant responsibility. And you''re right, it shouldn''t be about blame, but as a parent, and knowing the challenges of parenting in the present environment, I would like as much help as possible.

My problem is with the way these discussions are had. Invariably, some folks line up and say "we must have free speech!" and the others say, "we must ban objectionable material!" This is a completely unproductive situation. Individual rights (free speech) need to be balanced with group rights (not be assaulted with objectionable material). How about let''s explore that middle ground? We all know that just because you have the right to do something doesn''t mean you should. With great power (free speech) comes great responsibility. I get very frustrated with the way people advocate for free speech because it rarely puts it in the proper perspective.

[nlm2383]

I completely agree CriticalD1. If it''s not in video games, it''ll be in movies, on tv, in music, in books and in every day life. People do things because they are bad people, not because they play video games or watch movies or listen to certain types of music. Blaming these things and the people that make them is only making an excuse, not solving any problems. If a parent buys their child a mature rated game, that is the parents choice. It is rated that way to give a fair warning.

[criticald1]

We need to stop blaming things on video games. If the parents are any good, they will teach the child right from wrong.

And why so much controversy over games? Do you think people buy games to practice certain skills? No, it''s a form of entertainment, just like a movie, or a violent book.

So by saying violent video games are bad, you are also implying that a lot of literature and movies should cease to exist.

[dogband]

Where does the answer to this lie: where does personal freedom to manafacture this game and personal freedom to use this game end as compared to where a civilized society have the right to step in and say "this kind of game should be banned?"

I''m personally not sure.

What if a company wants to make life sized dolls of children, for folks to use for sexual explotation? Would this be acceptable?

What about making full sized adults models say in a police uniform for criminals to use for target practice? Would we be OK with this?

Are these two scenerios any different that allowing folks to make and use these terribly violent video games? In one instance the users act out the violence in virtural reality, in the other they act out the violent acts in life size simulations?

Are these different?
Where will it end? Think of where we were 10 or 20 years ago with this stuff, and where we will potentially be in 20 more years.