Manhunt

"Rockstar's latest gorefest is good: But is it really that great?"

Manhunt is the most violent game of the year.

But did you really expect anything else from the makers of GTA3 and Vice City?

Manhunt is the tale of James Earl Cash, a man sentenced to death by lethal injection. What were his crimes? Insignificant. What matters is that Cash is given a second chance. A man known only as Starkweather, AKA The Director, seemingly saves Cash's life as he takes him right out of the syringe filled jaws of death that he was in. Cash is ''Born again'', as the title of the first level so aptly states. But is all really what it seems? We quickly find out that Starkweather is no saint, and is in fact using Cash as the leading star of his own snuff film (FYI: Snuff films are extremely violent in nature, usually consisting of rapes or murders captured on live video). With no other choice, Cash is forced to comply with the directors sadistic hunting expedition, as he is taken on a strange, violent, and devilishly enjoyable ride.

Cash faces off against several unique and disturbing gangs for The Director's viewing pleasure. Usually outnumbered by at least 3 to 1, Cash's greatest ally in his struggle for survival are the shadows that dominate the landscape, be it junkyard, zoo, insane asylum, or apartment complex. This is where Manhunt's famed Execution system comes in. Each melee weapon has 3 different types of executions: Quick, Violent, and Gruesome, all shown in a scratchy, hand held camera format. These are performed by sneaking up on an enemy a la Solid Snake style. When you are close enough, Cash will raise his arm to indicate that he is ready to perform the deed. Simply pushing X results in a ''Quick'' kill, one that is short and low on the violence factor.. Holding X for a couple of seconds, until the targeting reticule turns yellow results in a ''Violent'' kill, which are more violent in nature than the Quick kills. Finally, holding the X button for over 5 seconds results in the heavenly red targeting reticule, indicating a ''Gruesome'' kill. These stretch the boundaries of video game violence, and will make even the strongest gamers squeamish. Example: When you perform a ''Gruesome'' kill with the baseball bat, Cash wraps his arms around the enemies neck, and presses the bat against their neck. Seconds before they die of suffocation, Cash releases his grip hold on the enemy, and proceeds to bash their brains against a nearby wall with one mighty swing of the bat at their head. It's incredibly violent, but very, very satisfying.

This task is made much easier by the aid of the radar that appears in the bottom left corner of the screen. The radar is not perfect, however, since it only reacts to sight or sound. That is, if an enemy is standing still out of your view, he will not show up on the radar. I found this to be a nice touch, since you must rely on your wits, and not just the radar, to succeed. Of course, there's always the possibility that you botch your sneaking, and will have to face your enemies. In pretty much any fight with more than one person, your only option to run like hell, until you find some shadows to hide in and wait out your pursuers. There are some levels which force Cash to use his firearms, and I found these to be the best in the game. Gunfights are very exciting and tense, as the excellent enemy AI provides a fun challenge.

In the graphics and audio department, Manhunt is done very well. The character models are very diverse, and the gang skins are incredibly detailed, from the lowly Hoods, to the commando Wardogs, to the lunatic Smileys, each gang is individually detailed, adding to the experience. The lighting effects are well done also, which is crucial to the experience since shadows play such a large role. The audio of the game is simply awesome, and will make you yearn for that Dolby Digital 5.1 speaker setup you've always dreamed of. Even without great speakers, the audio is still spectacular, and exceeded every expectation.

So far all I've done is rave about the game. So why an 8? Well, the execution system gets extremely repetitive over time. A nicer variety of weapons would have been nice, but instead I found myself executing enemy Hunters with the same weapons over and over. Even the violence becomes boring and cliche after a while; After the first level, none of the executions really surprised me. Like I mentioned earlier, the gunfight levels are a blast, and unfortunately do not appear until the later stages of the game. I would have preferred if they were rationed evenly throughout the game, instead of forcing you to play through 10+ levels of sneaking to get to them.

There isn't much for the replay value, except for going back and replaying levels to try and get a higher ranking. Getting good scores (Done by completing levels quickly and performing Gruesome executions) unlock bonus artwork, as well as bonus levels, which are a blast. This quickly wears off, though, and you'll probably find this game collecting dust in a month or two.

These are all minor complaints, however, for what is a solid, fun gaming experience. While it doesn't live up to the high standards set by GTA3 and Vice City, it's still worth at least a rental. And who knows; Maybe the reality displayed by the game isn't so far off, after all. The Most Dangerous Game, anyone?

Graphics - 8.5/10
Gameplay - 8/10
Sound - 9/10
Replay Value - 7.5/10
OVERALL - 8/10

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 12/05/03