Viewer Discretion REALLY Advised

Shifting focus to the more graphic and gratuitous side of video game violence, I’d like to take a look at a game series entitled Manhunt. The first game was developed by Rockstar in 2004 with its sequel released in 2007 (IGN, 2015). The core basis of these games is that players are trapped in a form of snuff film directed by an unseen antagonist and in order to escape and avoid being killed, they must kill every person in sight. This killing is done through “executions” where the character kills a person (who may or may not be a victim like the lead character) in an immensely brutal and graphic way. The player’s only option, in order to progress and complete the game, is to kill off each person in an area, the only choice being how badly they wish to kill that specific target, relative to how long they hold down the execution button. 

Given that the games are played completely seriously, containing no humour or lighthearted moments, the game appears to serve as the quintessential example that the public would use when discussing violence and games. The plot achieves nothing, only to provide sick thrills to the player and almost serves as a challenge, asking how far the player is willing to go just to have fun or be entertained. And it is through this blatant shock value that I feel both creates sales due to buyers’ morbid curiosity and the demand for games to undergo heavy censorship. Manhunt’s premise alone invites players to discover what it has to offer and gives them the answer to “Is it really as bad as everyone says?” Manhunt itself has already faced heavy censorship (Manhunt 2 having to blur some scenes to be released in the US,getting an uncensored version later) (Totilo, 2007) and was the first game to be banned in New Zealand for these graphic depictions of violence (Thorsen, 2003). The first game itself caused a stir amongst the developers as some felt slightly uncomfortable with the subject matter that they were designing (Cundy, 2007). Anything that is banned or has had controversy boiling over it is sure to get potential buyers riled at the prospect and whether or not that’s what Rockstar had wanted to do, it was effective, as the first game alone has sold over 1 million copies (T2, 2008).

One could potentially view Manhunt as a satire on the seemingly pointless amounts of violence that some games have in their composition, through its equally questionable excuse for a premise being the punchline. Though judging by the controversy and developer issues surrounding the games, I believe that if it is considered a satire, it would be through unintentional means. 

All of this aside, the game still manages to set up an end that gives a justification (though quite superficial) to such violent means. What I feel is most important to take away from this is that these types of games will be made, just as controversial films and book have existed and continue to do so today. People will always have that curiosity to experiment and dabble in something that is labelled as taboo, it’s in our nature and I see it only as a natural part of a medium’s progression as it grows and develops.