High Court cuts down Manhunt 2

Rockstar Games' controversial action killer game Manhunt 2 is once again facing a sales ban in the UK.

The High Court has ruled that the Video Appeals Committee (VAC) must re-assess its decision to overturn the British Board of Film Classification's (BBFC) original decision to prevent it from reaching UK shelves.

The BBFC slammed the game back in June for its "unrelenting focus on brutal slaying" and "casual sadism", making Manhunt 2 the first game to be banned in a decade. Since then the game has gone through a repeated series of being reprieved and the banned again. Rockstar even created a revised version of the game in an attempt to get a rating from the BBFC.

The BBFC claims that the VAC's recent judgement is "based on an approach to harm which is an incorrect interpretation of the Video Recordings Act".

"The Video Appeals Committee judgement, if allowed to stand, would have fundamental implications with regard to all the Board's decisions, including those turning on questions of unacceptable levels of violence," said the BBFC in a statement.

The committee was ordered to reconsider its decision, which was described as a "clear error of the law" by the High Court.

The VAC's original decision to overturn the BBFC ruling was a close run thing with the seven panellists being split four to three about the game. This means that the re-assessment could very easily see Manhunt 2 never reaching UK video game stores.

Regardless, Rockstar could side-step this ruling by providing a downloadable version of the game, as the 1984 Video Recording Act only covers physical media, not digital downloads.

See also:

Rockstar signs up to Steam

Another publisher joins the online delivery platform  07 Jan 2008

BBFC fights to uphold Manhunt 2 ban

Watchdog seeks judicial review  18 Dec 2007

Manhunt 2 given reprieve

UK ban overturned  12 Dec 2007

BBFC considers its position on Manhunt 2

Is the game more appealing now it's appealing?  10 Dec 2007

No evidence video games cause violence, says BBFC

But we're banning Manhunt 2 anyway  28 Nov 2007

Hackers crack Manhunt footage in hours

So much for regulation ...  02 Nov 2007

Manhunt 2 banned again in the UK

Revised version still too violent, says BBFC  09 Oct 2007

US gives green light to Manhunt 2

Revised version of controversal game finally given a rating  28 Aug 2007

Rockstar to appeal Manhunt 2 ban

Will argue its case with the BBFC  03 Aug 2007

Rockstar Games pulls Manhunt 2

Controversial game on hold after widespread protest  22 Jun 2007

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