Condemned 2 Toned Down to Avoid AO Rating

The violent content of Monolith's upcoming Condemned 2: Bloodshot has been cut back as a result of the Adults Only rating received by Manhunt 2, according to the game's producer.

Speaking in an interview with CVG, Constantine Hantzopoulos said he and the Condemned 2 development team were "pretty cognizant" of the ESRB and the impact the AO rating had on Manhunt 2. "We're working closely with the ESRB to make sure everything goes through okay but there's stuff we've cut already," he said. "An example of what we cut would be putting someone's head in a vice. That was too much, you know. There are also some decapitations we've lost."

Hartzopoulos had previously worked on Indigo Prophecy (called Fahrenheit for its European release) which was originally given an AO rating for sexual content. "I worked on Fahrenheit and had to cut the sex scenes out of the game for the U.S.," he said. "Yes, I was the guy that did that. It sucked because I don't believe in that, right. But you've got to do what you've got to do."

The ESRB rating of Adults Only for Manhunt 2 has left its future in question. Most major retailers in the U.S. will not stock AO-rated games, while both Sony and Nintendo refuse to authorize them for release on their consoles. Take-Two Interactive has vehemently disagreed with the rating in statements, but has not yet determined how it will proceed with the game.