Rockstar’s always controversial Manhunt series is back in the news. The Entertainment Software Ratings Board (ESRB) currently lists the PC version of the game with an “Adults Only” rating. The console version of Manhunt 2, released in 2008, initially received the same rating before Rockstar made changes that earned the game a “Mature” rating.

The 2008 game was banned in the United Kingdom and Australia because of its violent content. That led everyone from anti-violent game activist Jack Thompson to Sen. Hillary Clinton into battle to get the game banned in the states.

Confirming something most of us already know, a new study coming out of Villanova University indicates that motion controls do not increase aggression in people who play violent video games.

Certainly inspired by the controversy controversy surrounding the Wii release of Manhunt 2, a study titled “An examination of psychoticism and motion capture controls as moderators of the effects of violent video games” (Patrick M. Markey and Kelly Scherera, 2008, Department of Psychology, Villanova University) examined the “hostility and aggressive thoughts” in individuals while they played Manhunt 2 as well as Tiger Woods PGA Tour 08

While the streets might be safe for a few weeks while everyone is inside playing Grand Theft Auto IV: Vice City, it’s only a matter of time before hooligans decide to stretch their thumbs and break out of the family den or dilapidated tenement apartment (adorned with a 42 in. LCD screen cranked up to 1080p, natch).

This is the fourth time a GTA has cracked the skulls of our law- and god-fearing youth, and it’s hard not to see its influence everywhere. Take this piece in the Sunday New York Times Magazine about a group of former gang members who try to head off attempts at gangland shooting violence…

According to the European Commission survey, Ireland is now banning violent video games.

The reason for banning violent games, according to the EU’s study of the implementation of Pan European Game Information ratings, is that many of the EU nations are not enforcing the age limits on the games identified by PEGI.

The only game currently known to be banned in Ireland is…

Just as we thought the Manhunt 2 issue was over, Senators Hillary Clinton (D-NY), Joe Lieberman (ID-CT), Evan Bayh (D-IN) and Sam Brownback (R-KS) have cooperatively written and sent a letter to the ESRB president, Patricia Vance, on November 21, 2007, concerning the Mature rating assigned to the revised version of Manhunt 2. No surprise more »

When all the hoopla about Manhunt 2 was flying around I started noticing the movies in my local Walmart. Walmart, as you probably know, does not sell AO games. It also does not sell NC-17 movies. However, when I wander down the aisle of new releases (which happens to be just opposite the XBox 360 and PS3 shelves) about a third of the titles are prominently displayed as “Unrated.”

These unrated movies were very much rated when they were shown in the movie theater, usually with an “R.” The r to NR rating switch typically means that all the content left out of the theater release to get down to that coveted R rating was put back into the DVD release. These movies are unrated because if they were…

The controversy that’s heated up the gaming world all summer has just received something of a happy ending. Rockstar and Take Two announced today (August 24, 2007) that a modified version of violent action title Manhunt 2 was awarded an “M” rating and an October 31, 2007 release date in North America. It will still bear content descriptors for “Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language, Strong Sexual Content and Use of Drugs” but the AO has been lifted.

Manhunt 2, (for those who have been living under a digital rock), was previously slapped with…

Across the Atlantic, Manhunt 2 bore the brunt of the fierce campaign against excessively violent games. In the US, however, the Manhunt 2 episode doesn’t seem to have set any precedents, at least that’s how it appears for federal judge Ronald Whyte. In his recent ruling ruling, Whyte decided a California state law baring minors from playing violent games was unconstitutional. In anticipation to California Governor – and former movie star – Arnold Schwarzenegger’s expected appeal against the judgement, the Entertainment Software Association’s Video Game Voters Network (VGVN) is gathering support.

VGVN has uploaded the lengthy ruling on its website and is urging gamers to write to the Governor through the website in protest of the appeal. VGVN has also launched a diatribe against Gov. Schwarzenegger, labeling his movies as “violent.” The group’s main contention is…

Take Two Interactive Software, the ever-controversial company, has added added to its list of many woes. On Thursday, August 2, 2007, it announced it is delaying the release of Grand Theft Auto IV, originally slated for October 2007, until Spring 2008. The company cited the need for more development time. The game is slated for release on the PS3 and XBox 360.

At the same time, Take-Two reduced its earning forecasts for a year in which the company had already prepared for a third quarter loss, hoping to break even with GTAIV‘s practically guaranteed success.

Amid reorganization costs, litigation, the failure to launch Manhunt 2, and now the delay of GTA, Take-Two forecasts a …

Game Politics has posted a list of gaming’s 10 biggest scandals including biggies like the recent Manhunt 2 AO rating and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas’ hot coffee mod. The list, which went up Monday (July 16, 2007) is definitely geared towards the modern era – you’ll find nothing pre-1993 (E.T., anyone? Or how about a little game called Custer’s Revenge? – but it’s quite amusing and interesting nonetheless.

Other highlights include …