Manhunt 2 is a disappointing sequel, suffering from censorship thanks to the ESRB.
Rockstar has apparently gone too far this time. The game was scheduled for release sometime in July, but they suffered a devastating delay thanks to the ESRB rating the game AO. This effectively banned the game, because the three major console manufacturers will not allow an AO game to be published on their system. Even so, retailers will refuse to carry AO games.
Rockstar was intent on getting the game published, anyway. So, they made a few alterations, and a couple of exclusions regarding what Manhunt is known best for: the executions. Aside from the removal of a pliar-induced castration, they have added a blurring effect over every single execution. What they've done was remove pretty much all the color except for black and red and have shaken the camera, so you really can't see too clearly what is going on. The end result is a less than satisfying feeling of sadistic accomplishment, and that's what the Manhunt games are all about.
The first Manhunt game had you stalking your stalkers and holding down a button long enough to see more severe executions. The tension was increased because you were afraid your stalker would turn around, or you would be spotted by someone else before you could pull off a higher level execution. If you could pull it off, you were treated to much more blood, gore and brutality. Since you can't really enjoy the same kind of detail in Manhunt 2, the incentive for pulling off riskier executions is all but gone.
With the Wii version, there is one saving grace. When you have your character getting ready for a kill, you'll see an on screen icon that will show you how to move your remote or nunchuck, and then you move them depending on the icon shown for that level. Then, a series of icons will flash on the screen, and you mimic the movements accordingly. This translates in you becoming part of the physical action of killing someone, and you may want to bother with trying for higher levels of executions to enjoy acting out a longer killing sequence, such as bludgeoning someone to death with a nightstick.
The disappointments don't just stop with the censored executions, either. The story isn't as great as the first game. You start out playing as Danny Lamb, who finds himself escaping from a psych ward with no memory of who he is. He follows one Leo Kasper, who helps him escape, and teaches him how to be a cold-blooded killer in order to survive. The game will alternate gameplay back and forth between to the two characters, and usually will have you playing as Leo during flashback sequences. The storytelling could have used better direction, because it's disjointed at times, and doesn't really follow through with important details as well as you would've hoped. Plus, there is a very easily predictable twist later on in the game, which is also highly unoriginal.
The game plays out just the same as the first Manhunt. You stay in the shadows and you pay close attention to your radar, so you're not being spotted by your hunters. You draw them close to you by making noise, either by throwing something, or rapping on a wall. They'll come to investigate, and since they all apparently suffer from cataracts, they can't see you standing there in the darkness. There is one new change, though. If they are close enough to you, they'll try to peer closer in, and then the screen will show a white dot, and then a circle will close on it. You have to stay perfectly still, or the white dot will move, and if it touches the circle, the hunter will spot you, and you'll either have to fight or run.
Manhunt 2 also uses a good bit of the Wii's motion-sensing interface. To punch, you swing the remote for a right punch, and the nunchuck attachment for a left punch. You can even do a 1-2-3 combo, and that's a lot of fun to do when you need to fight and don't have a weapon. At times, you'll be required to chop a head off a body with an axe, and you stand over them and bring the remote down overhead just like you're swinging an axe. The only thing disappointing about the general controls is that when you're throwing an object, you press the B button instead of making a throwing motion with the remote. It just seems like they overlooked this opportunity.
The biggest flaw with the controls, though, is during the gunplay. When you have a gun equipped, you have to hold down the C button in order to use it. It then switches to an over-the-shoulder view, and you move the aiming reticule around with the remote. If you're close enough to the target, you can get a headlock for a headshot, but if you don't have steady hands, the lock is too easy to lose. There are also times when you may enter aiming mode when you're against the wall and because of how you're holding the remote, your movement or aiming could become completely screwed up, requiring you to exit from aiming and try again.
You can also take cover behind walls, tables etc., and pop out from behind them to shoot and get behind cover again, but as said before, unless you have a steady hand, it can be too easy to lose your headlock. Sniping is also pretty loose, as moving the crosshairs around is way too floaty. It tends to move around much slower than you want at times, and other times it keeps moving when you want it to stop. So, whereas it's more fun to kill people with melee weapons on the Wii, it would probably be more fun to shoot people on the PS2 or PSP.
Graphically, this game pretty much is embarassing to look at by today's standards. It's clear that no work was put into the Wii version to make it look any better than the PS2 version, and even then, it seems like it's using the exact same engine as the first game. The developers seemed like they were happy with ugly textures and low polygon counts, which would explain why no 360 or PS3 version was even considered.
The audio is also rather dismal. The hacking and bashing and cutting and sawing is actually quite satisying, but the sound quality of the voices leaves much to be desired. The audio for the gunfire is also incredibly weak. The game's overall sound just makes you wonder if you have something going on wth your speakers.
And perhaps the biggest disappointment of all is the last level. The first Manhunt had such an incredibly climatic finish, and also had one of the most freaky and disturbing bosses. Not so much here. Without spoiling anything, you'll just be left going, "Is that it?", and as the credits roll, you'll find yourself wearing a humungous frown from cheek to cheek. Supposedly, there is a an alternate ending if you play through the game pulling off only Level 2 and 3 executions, but very few will be compelled enough to play through this game again.
One can blame the ESRB for destroying what could have been a great game, but now that the focus of executions has been diminished, the flaws become more apparent, and it's easy to see the core game of Manhunt 2 is nowhere as good as its predecssor was. This also leaves the question to be asked, "Should the greatness of the first Manhunt have been preserved by not making a sequel?" Many people will come to the conclusion that yes, it should have. If a Manhunt 3 is ever made, it needs to reinvent itself as a game so it can stand on its own two feet if the ESRB forces Rockstar to edit itself again.