Rockstar's Upcoming Manhunt

From Slashdot Games, a link to some Gamers.com coverage of Manhunt. GTA plus stealth gameplay plus SmashTV.

Manhunt is an upcoming title from Rockstar North, company responsible for the Grand Theft Auto series. They're a primarily Scottish development team; the GTA games played like an absurdist satire of urban American life. From this preview, their upcoming title Manhunt sounds like a cynical distopian take on a media-saturated society:

The hero -- or, at any rate, the playable character -- is James Earl Cash, a prison inmate who discovers an unpleasant life after death. His lethal injection is faked, and he finds himself in a ruined city that is the property of the Director, a wealthy dilettante who amuses himself by staging violent games of survival. "Carcer City," as it's called, is populated with wrecked buildings, roving armed gangs, and closed-circuit cameras, all of them feeding into the Director's control room. It's Mr. Cash's goal to escape the city without dying for the Director's vicarious entertainment.

They've taken the already downcast world of GTA and made an even darker playground of it. It seems to be a parable on media, urban living and violence. Here's A Clockwork Orange moment for a jaded gamer:

every weapon can be used for an automatic kill if you approach the target undetected. In a neat twist, though, the ensuing death is presented from the Director's perspective, forcing the player into his unpleasantly voyeuristic role.

There's a Valiant Entertainment stealth-promotional web site. It crashed my browser with inline streaming Quicktime videos!

Comments

[Draigon]

Why do I keep thinking of Arnold Schwarzenegger when I hear about this game?

"The hero -- or, at any rate, the playable character"

That cracks me up everytime I read it haha. I can't wait.

[loneblogger]

Manhunt does sound great. Stealth games are good, but I tend to find the stealth becomes too much at times. You feel like you are holding back. Hitman was a game that suffered from this. By the same token, Hitman and Thief were games that thrived due to the thirst for stealth styled games.

The current "story line" cracks me up. Hahaha. "a wealthy dilettante who amuses himself by staging violent games of survival." ... another beauty.

[misuba]

the ensuing death is presented from the Director's perspective, forcing the player into his unpleasantly voyeuristic role.Mmm, yeah, everybody will get the irony of this, and Manhunt won't do any of the damage to video gaming's reputation that GTA3 did.That said, it does sound like great gameplay and fine work for those who do get the irony.

[Boitano]

I gotta say, very weird, not what I expected at all. Does anyone remember the movie Running Man. Hopefully the game is a little better than the movie was. Also, I hope the game isn't so dark that it becomes depressing to paly.

[VGR]

I read up on a sizable magazine article in PSM, And I must say I was suprised at how great this game appeared.
According to those who playtested it, You are given a very large dose of fear while playing it, As if they created it like some sort of survival horror game. I am picturing it with an almost splinter cellesque vibe.
Oh, And how can a game become depressing to 'paly'? It is just a game, and not some sort of..Eh, nevermind.

If something can effect you that deeply I highly suggest you never play anything over a Teen rating.

[Du]

where can i get to see a ix of man hunt itsounds great!

[AstroZombie]

They should have named it Liberty City Survivor...lol

[Victor]

Very nice blog

[Hunter/Killer]

This IS NOT a GAME! this is a test of sanity. you become but a pawn in a web of violence. the more gore, the better your rating. This director sells these scenes you kill in as snuff films and expliotation films. If beauty was sneaking up on an unsuspecting fool and taking a piece of razor wire, cutting off his head to use as lure for his buddies.... then Manhunt deserves to be displayed in the louvre next to the Mona Lisa. To watch in horror as you gouge out eyes with a broken pieces glass is but some of the Fun you can apprciate from MANHUNT. I love watching the skulls crack under a metal baseball bat.

[DivideByZero]

Hmmmmm :) Manhunt...I have grown rather fond of Rockstar's titles as they cut right through to the core of what gaming can be...a suspencion of belief and a trip away from our world into a fantasy world, allowing us players to get away with things we would never dream of trying in "The Real World". Kudos to Rockstar for always ignoring political correctness in favour of us gamers and our experiences :)

[hardy]

Will it avaible in german language?

[Erica]

Hello

[kuwang]

A av A dj adp v3 mp3 qd

[mik]

zertifizierung in Russlandexport
Certyfikacja w Rosji Certyfikacja w Rosji pozdrawia wszystkch
certyfikacja na wshodzienormy w Rosji
gost i Gostcertyfikacja GOST-R
Normy GOST i standardy certyfikat
certyfikat GOST
certification russia Russia
certyfikacja GOST-R gost
certyfikacja Rosja
wizy do Rosjito wszystko pomoze
Certyfikacja GOST ci prowadzic biznes w Rosji
certyfikacja GOST i wsem priwet
certificate of conformitygosty
russian certification gost
certification in russiar
russian certificationrosja
gost certificationw rosji
certyfikacja w rosjicertyfikat
gost certyfikacjacertyfikaty
certyfikacja na wschodzie
certyfikacja gost rrosja
certyfikacja w rosjiw rosji
gost r
russian certification
GOSTtest Gdansk
noclegi Gdasktest Gdask gost
gosttest certyfikacja w rosji
certyfikacja w Rosji w Rosji

zertifizierung GOST zertifizierung Russland
CERTIFIKACE RUSKO
certification russia
GOST ISO
gost zertifizierung
Noclegi gdansk pokoje goscinnetest Gdansk
gosttest certyfikacja w Rosji
Certyfikacja wyrobow i usug
certyfikacja w Rosjitest certyfikacja w Rosji
Certyfikacja wyrobow i usug
certyfikacja w Rosji gosttest certyfikacja w Rosji