British High Court says no to Manhunt 2

The thick plottens.

A long time ago (too long, why can’t they just decide, already ?) the BBFC denied makers of gore-filled game, Manhunt 2, a classification meaning it could not be sold in the UK.

The game has already been released in the US but received an Adults Only rating from the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB).

The BBFC refused to give the title a classification as they felt the game was too “brutal” for release.

Manhunt developer, Rockstar, made changes to the content of the game in an attempt to tone down the level of violence but the board felt that adequate changes had not been made to the game and so, rejected it a second time.

Rockstar took the two rejections to the Video Appeals Committee and the VAC ruled that the game was well within the bounds of the 18+ rating set by other games of its genre.

The BBFC brought this before the High Court intending to fight the game’s release. The board claimed the "game had been approved for release on a misinterpretation of the law."

The High Court ruled in favour of the BBFC and stated that the VAC’s decision to allow for classification was flawed by "a clear error of the law".

The Video Appeals Committee must now reconsider it’s decision. Swings and roundabouts.