According to Matt Casamassina on IGN, who played both the original AO pariah version and the updated retail-friendly M version of Rockstar’s Manhunt 2, the majority of the gore and violence in the game remains intact. What has changed however is the animations for killing enemies which used to be shown in all their gory, graphic detail but now have been blurred and darkened to hide what’s really happening. Also, the testicle-targeting pliers move that got a lot of flak has been completely taken out.
So what do you think? Is this going to change anyone’s opinion on the game? Is it going to be enough to get the Leland Yees and Jack Thompsons off of Rockstar and the ESRB’s backs? Is this the kind of compromise that spoils a game you might otherwise check out?