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Manhunt Review for PlayStation 2 (PS2)
Posted on Saturday, December 06, 2003 @ 07:28:14 pm E.S.TManhunt is very easily the most violent game ever made, and I do mean ever. You play as James Earl Cash, who was recently given a lethal injection. In all actuality, it was just a sedative and James wakes up to find himself be guided by The Director around Carcer City. The Director has paid off the officials to barricade this section of the city for his own personal use – that use being an area to film his gruesome murder films. He’s also bribed local gangs to hunt you down – it’s your job to escape alive.
The basic gameplay consists of having you sneak into the shadows only to leave them to execute your enemies. The game’s premise is based completely around two things: sound and light, or lack thereof. The game places you in a run down city named Carcer City, where your objective is to execute enemies for the Director’s pleasure. Every time you execute an enemy, you’ll watch from a 3rd person mini-movie, with blood splashing on the camera and all.
You’ll execute enemies by sneaking up behind them and holding one of two buttons. When you let go, you’ll execute in one of three fashions, decided by the length of time you hold the button. While this seems very novel (and extremely violent) at first, this form of death gets seriously repetitive. For large portions of each level (each of which is divided into sub-chapters) you’ll be stuck with the same weapon, be it a crowbar, a machete, a nail gun or one of many other weapons. There are several different weapon groups, such as light, one time use weapons (pieces of glass, wire), medium weapons (crowbars, knives), large weapons (metal bats, shotguns) and lures (bottles, bricks). These deaths are intensely disgusting – I had trouble playing this game for large portions of time without becoming nauseous. With the machete, for example, you’ll first strike your opponent in the back, and then proceed with chopping their head off (ergo allowing you to use their head as a lure weapon). Another example is when you use a metal bat: Cash will beat the enemy down initially, only to smash the adversary’s head off. If an enemy is to spot you, you’ll fight them in an extremely basic way, with a few attacks and a grapple move.
Someone isn't about to have a nice day.
In Manhunt you’ll want to stay concealed in the shadows at all times, only to leave to slaughter your enemies. You can use lures such as bottles and bricks to distract enemies, allowing you to run behind them – although if you’re going for a high rating, you’ll want to execute every enemy you spot. Noise also plays an intensive role in the game. Walking over hard materials or running will attract enemies, so you’ll need to sneak around as much as possible to avoid confrontation – in which anymore than 2 enemies and it will be nearly impossible to escape a fight alive. A neat addition to the game is the ability to talk into a USB headset to create noise instead of hitting walls with your weapon. To further the game’s experience, you can also wear the headset to mimick Cash's earpiece. The Director's comments come through the earpiece, and if you wear the headset, his voice will only come through the headset.
As fun and interesting as this may sound, it does get very repetitive. Cash encounters very similar enemies and walks down many alleys that look much the same as previous ones. Rockstar North included small scenarios included in the game to keep things interesting. In one mission, if you are spotted the thugs will execute your family one by one.
Cash is strapped down for his "execution".
Disgusted yet? It gets worse. Often during fights the enemy will beg for their life, only to have you butcher them. The Director mocks you, desperate for blood to be spilled. During the mini-cut scenes, showcasing you slaughter an opponent, you’ll watch as blood gets spilled all over the screen.
Graphically, Manhunt is impressive. Lighting is a major point in this game and Rockstar has perfected that aspect of the game. Everything looks sharp, and the animation is exceptional. Executions look extremely realistic; you can easily mistaken it for a movie. To further the experience, during the exection cut-scenes, the video gets grainy and lower-quality to emphasize the gritty atmosphere.
On the sound side of thing, there isn't much to be heard but the voice acting is well done. The Director sounds truly sadistic and very convincing. Turn off the lights and close the door and you're in for a spine-shivering adventure.
You’ll need a strong stomach to manage this one, but it’s definitely worth it. Albeit slightly repetitive situations and scenarios, Manhunt manages to rise above similar games. Don’t be surprised if you get nauseous playing, though. Review By: Chris Pereira - 12037 Reads
Manhunt Review Scores for PS2 :
| Gameplay |
| 8.5 |
| Graphics |
| 9 |
| Sound |
| 9 |
| Replay |
| 8.5 |
| Overall |
| 8.6 |
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