Manhunt 2 PSP suspended
Publisher scraps plans to distribute game
Take-Two has stated its intention to suspend the distribution of Manhunt 2 on July 10th, the date the game was scheduled to appear.
"Take-Two Interactive Software has temporarily suspended plans to distribute Manhunt 2 for the Wii or PlayStation platforms while it reviews its options with regard to the recent decisions made by the BBFC and ESRB," reads an official Take-Two written statement.
"We continue to stand behind this extraordinary game. We believe in freedom of creative expression, as well as responsible marketing, both of which are essential to our business of making great entertainment."
This outcome is hardly surprising given the BBFC and Irish Film Censor's Offices bans earlier this week, along with the 'Adults Only' US rating which effectively prevented the title to be published on PlayStation and Nintendo platforms.
The option to appeal the classification boards' decisions remains open to the publisher for a while longer, although at this stage the more realistic approach would presumably be to rework the game content for a subsequent resubmission.
The exposure the game has recently received certainly wouldn't hurt sales, after all.