Major U.S. retailer Target has pulled
Manhunt 2 from its shelves, and the title no longer appears in search results at the retailer's online store. The move comes in the wake of a broadly-circulated, but complex hack that un-blurred some of the controversial kill scenes in the PSP version of the game.
However, the ESRB
recently declined to revise the game's "M" rating, though it acknowledged the hack, stating, "we do not believe these modifications fully restore the product to the version that originally received an AO rating."
Despite the fact that the exploit only affects the PSP version of
Manhunt 2, Target has apparently pulled both versions of the title. A Target representative
confirmed to GameSpot that the PSP hack was the reason for the decision, commenting:
"While Manhunt 2 was given a Mature rating by the ERSB, we received additional information that players can potentially view previously filtered content by altering the game code. As a result, we have decided not to carry the game."