Manhunt – PS2 – Review

The majority of us enjoy
different forms of entertainment, whether it be video games, movies, sports, and
so on. Some of us enjoy a more action based format, while others really crave
puzzle solving, mysteries, or a wide variety of other things. Many times, movies
and games can be used to mess with our heads or make us feel uncomfortable, with
big screen films like Seven or gaming titles like GTA III being used as escape
opportunities that delve into the dark side of human nature rather than seeing
or playing the “good guy” all the time. Well, Rockstar has been famous for
making gaming titles that tend to revolve around just about anything and
everything illegal, and their new title for the PS2 called Manhunt is no
exception. What happens when a disturbing shock plot like the movie 8mm meets a
game like Metal Gear Solid head on? Read on to find out …

Manhunt opens as James Cash
(a man guilty of crimes too heinous to mention) is walked down death row and is
executed by lethal injection for the entire world to see. Soon after, he wakes
up in a room to the sound of a voice and is told that a man is offering him a
second chance … a man known only as “the director”. Cash is not being given a
second chance at life to right wrongs and save the innocent though as some plots
go. Instead, the director is a man who tapes and sells snuff and murder films,
and he wants Cash to be the star in his new grisly murder movies. Cash is then
unleashed into the run down and gritty Carcer City streets, and his job is to
kill the roving gangs that have been paid to kill him for the camera before they
get to him first.

OK … here’s where the really
violent part of the game comes out. The thugs that walk the streets are tough
and looking to kill, so Cash has to remain extremely quiet when moving around
them but also needs to dispose of them in a number of disturbing ways for the
man who saved his life and his cameras. Whenever you approach an enemy from
behind, the L1 button will target the bad guy, and when it turns to a white
flashing color, you hold down the attack button as long as you can. It will
change from white to yellow to red, each color representing a more brutal style
of execution, and it is important to be as vicious as possible when performing
killings since they all play into getting a better rating at the end of the
stage and unlocking four new bonus areas of the game.  A white target (hasty
killing) usually is just a fast disposal … like asphyxiating your enemy with a
plastic bag, while moving into the red (gruesome) areas goes into such things as
decapitations, dismemberments, disemboweling, and a number of other pretty sick
disposal methods that I won’t go into detail about for the sake of GZ fans with
weak stomachs.

All violence aside, the
gameplay is pretty solid. Manhunt is a 3^rd person title, and the
controls are responsive and worked well, both for the sneaking around aspect and
the heads up melee fighting if you happen to get spotted. The majority of the
game and the object over all is stealth though, and similar to Metal Gear Solid,
Cash can silently walk around, strafe along walls, or hide out in dark, shadowed
areas to avoid detection and get the jump on an unsuspecting hunter. He can also
hit walls to lure in someone, or throw items like bottles, bricks, and even the
severed head of an opponent to make noise and bring hunters to him, rather than
risking death himself by stepping out in the middle of an open courtyard or
something.

Aside from the stealth
gameplay, which was a lot of fun, another unique little thing about Manhunt was
the use of the PS2 headset for anyone who has one. When using the headset, it
will actually separate out the voice of the director from the rest of the game
so he will speak to you directly into your ear. In addition, yelling into the
microphone will also cause the hunters to hear you and could alert them to your
position … so if you’re using it you have to remain as quiet as you are trying
to make Cash be on screen.

Graphically, Manhunt looks
really good and sets the tone well. The environment has a run down, abandoned,
and “yukky” kind of look to it, similar to games like Resident Evil or Silent
Hill, and the streets are littered with garbage and tons of four letter words.
The animations were decent for the characters, and one of the coolest features
of the game is how the camera will change from the 3^rd person
perspective while you are controlling Cash to a grainy 8mm kind of view and
footage (like you are actually viewing the game on a movie camera) when you
perform an execution, complete with blood squirting up and splattering the lens.
Cash will also deteriorate as he takes damage, showing cuts, bruises, and
becoming spattered with his own (or his enemies) blood along the way.

The sound to Manhunt also
just adds to the game’s overall dark feel, as the music has an industrial,
chugging kind of sound to it that will escalate if Cash is spotted. You will
also be able to hear Cash’s heartbeat as he hides out in the shadows, and the
thugs roaming around are foul mouthed and spew out a ton of taunts, insults, and
more four letter words than I’ve heard in most R rated movies … not to mention
if you have them on the ground they will beg and plead with you with things like
“I have kids!” right before you drive your heel down into their windpipe.

Overall, Manhunt is an
extremely violent game which will probably have a lot of people walking away
feeling a little “not right” after playing it. When you remove all of the
gritty, hardcore violence you are left with a fun stealth game that tends to be
pretty addictive, even despite the horrible things that you are forced to do
along the way. If you are a fan of stealth and 3^rd person action
titles like Metal Gear Solid (and are an adult), Manhunt could be a good buy for
you.

As a quick note to parents
who are reading this, I know that sometimes the overall thought can be “well, I
know it has an M rating but it’s just a game”. Trust me on this one … kids under
17 should not be allowed to be anywhere around this game, and it contains scenes
of some of the most disgusting killings that I have seen either in movies or in
a game, not to mention being filled with more four letter words than you’d care
to shake a stick at. If you’ve got kids, this is one of those titles that they
should never know that you own.  

Gameplay: 8.0

The gameplay in Manhunt was solid, and revolves around
stealth and sneaking around similar to titles like Metal Gear Solid. Cash has
some various fighting skills if he gets up close and personal too, and can
execute low blows, hard face hits, and grapples. The addition of the PS2 headset
to not only hear the director but also alert hunters by yelling was a neat touch
as well, and the game provides a good amount of up front and replay value since
you can always go back and try to be more violent to get a better rating.

Graphics: 8.4
The world is
presented as a gritty, run down and unfriendly place, and sets the tone well.
The characters range in design from mask or stocking wearing hoods to white
supremacists loaded with tattoos of four letter words or such messages as
“please kill me” on them. The executions will switch to a grainy 8mm kind of
camera look to them, and the killings themselves got extremely disturbing …
especially as new weapons were unlocked.

Sound: 8.3
The music in
Manhunt is a churning, industrial kind of sound which helps to escalate the
tension as you sneak around trying not to get caught. The voiceovers and taunts
of the enemies made them sound intimidating at times, and the director’s parts
were played out superbly as he praises or criticizes you and makes some pretty
graphic comments about you or your victims.

Difficulty: Medium
There are only
two difficulty settings … fetish (normal) and hardcore (hard) to play with. The
game can be extremely unforgiving when you make a mistake, but after a couple of
tries and some patience it remains challenging without being frustrating.

Concept: 8.2
The stealth game
has been done before, but not like this. While Manhunt is definitely the most
graphic and violent game I have played, Rockstar made sure not to sacrifice
gameplay just to shock people, and it remains a lot of fun and can get pretty
addictive (despite the hardcore nature of it).

Overall: 8.3

I remember a lot of people
complaining about the release of Postal 2 … well let me say that Rockstar has
once again proven why they are the kings and queens of controversy with Manhunt.
Fans of stealth games will have a good time with it, and the gameplay is solid
enough and easy enough to learn that you can jump right in and start playing.
Parents … please, PLEASE make sure that your kids are not allowed anywhere near
this game. Trust me, you’ll thank me for it.