British High Court Rule on Manhunt 2
It has emerged (according to GameSpot) that the release of Manhunt 2 in the UK has been put on hold again following a High Court Ruling. Judge Mitting overruled the Video Appeals Committee decision to allow Manhunt 2 to be released.
Following the VAC’s decision to allow the game to be released the BBFC took the case to the High Court and this led to the ruling from Judge Mitting. He said that the VAC had to judge whether Manhunt 2 could cause ‘potential harm and risk of harm’ to children rather than basing their judgment on actual harm.
Mitting then went on to say that the VAC must reclassify the game based on the new factors that he has brought to their attention.
It seems that this protracted case is drawing to an end and will most likely result in Manhunt 2 not being released in the UK. While the game may not have received great critical response it will be a shame for the game not to appear on UK shelves.
Finally the thought must be raised that this ruling is going to have an effect on many future releases. If the VAC and BBFC have to classify games based on potential harm to children I expect to see many future games be banned from release in the UK. Time will tell whether a dangerous precedent has been set.