Originally scheduled for a North American and European release in July 2007, the game was suspended by Rockstar's parent company Take-Two Interactive when it was refused classification in some countries and given an Adults Only (AO) rating in the United States.

[2] As Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony Computer Entertainment do not allow licensed releases of AO titles on their consoles, this would have severely limited their potential customer base in the US as well.

[5] However, boards in some other countries still refused the edited version, such as the BBFC in Britain and the IFCO in Ireland; following Rockstar appealing, ultimately the game was accepted with an 18 certificate and PEGI 18+ rating respectively.

The title garnered controversy before and after its release, getting the attention of British parliament member Keith Vaz, American anti-video game activist Jack Thompson, and various US senators.

As with the original game, the primary gameplay mechanic is stealth execution, whereby the player character must approach an enemy from behind, undetected, and kill them.

When hiding in the shadows, if an enemy investigates the area, the player may have to mimic a combination of buttons or motions (similar to that of a quick time event), in order to regulate the character's breathing so as to ensure that he remains calm and undetected.

Tasks such as running, opening doors, walking on gravel and cornstalks, or accidentally knocking objects over, can alert the enemy to the player's position.

He and Leo then set out to unravel the secrets of Daniel's past, all the while pursued by bounty hunters and agents of a mysterious organization called "The Project".

As the plot unfolds, Daniel learns that he was once a top scientist in the employment of the "Pickman Project", a government-sponsored weapons program involving brainwashing and mind control techniques.

The idea is to remotely activate the assassin persona for a mission, but keep it disabled otherwise, meaning the person would then have no memory of what happened, neutralizing enemy interrogation.

Six years prior, with the Project's funds under threat, Daniel volunteered himself to test the Pickman Bridge, hoping that the resulting payoff would allow him to clear his family's debts and provide a financially secure future.

However, the Project caught Daniel/Leo after the murder, erased his memory, torched his house, and had him committed to Dixmor, where they had been working to study the effects of the implant and repair the damage, without success.

An alternate ending is unlocked on the Hard difficulty or if Danny killed too many civilians throughout the game, resulting in the final battle being played from Leo's perspective.

[21][22][23] Take-Two themselves preempted this debate, issuing a statement on 8 February, in which they said "We are aware that in direct contradiction to all available evidence, certain individuals continue to link the original Manhunt title to the Warren Leblanc case in 2004.

"[24] Later that day, Patrick and Giselle Pakeerah (parents of Leblanc's victim) condemned the game and insisted that Manhunt was a factor in their son's murder.

[29] He also accused the Entertainment Software Association, Penny Arcade, IGN, GamePolitics.com, GameSpot, GameSpy, Eurogamer, Kotaku, Blank Rome and the US Justice Department of collaborating and conspiring with Take-Two to commit racketeering activities.

He went on to refer to Rockstar North as "Scottish sociopaths sipping their single malt Glenlivet in between brainstorming software programming sessions",[29] and accused Take-Two of "spewing its pop culture sewage to the world's children".

For their part, Take-Two agreed to drop a prior suit accusing Thompson of contempt of court concerning the game Bully, which he attempted to have banned in 2005.

[40] Later, the BBFC's press officer, Sue Clarke, told IGN that Rockstar was wrong in this assertion, and that "[they] haven't singled out" Manhunt 2.

[42] The following day, 20 June, Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony Computer Entertainment issued statements saying they do not allow AO titles on their platforms, which effectively meant the game would have been banned in the US.

[43] A few months after news of the rating broke, an early uncut PlayStation 2 version was leaked online by a Sony Computer Entertainment Europe employee.

The ESRB's reversal of its earlier decision dramatically increases the likelihood that Manhunt 2 – the most violent game to date produced for the interactive Nintendo Wii platform – will be marketed and sold to children.

We urge the ESRB to make public their rationale for changing Manhunt 2's rating, including detailing any content that was removed from the game.

Leland Yee and the Parents Television Council demanded that Manhunt 2 be re-rated AO, but after examining the situation, the ESRB concluded it was not Rockstar's fault that these hacks could be used and decided to stick with the M rating.

[53] David Cooke, Director of the BBFC stated "We recognize that the distributor has made changes to the game, but we do not consider that these go far enough to address our concerns about the original version.

[55] TIGA president Fred Hasson testified that he was "surprised at how tame [Manhunt 2] is compared to some very graphical scenes I've seen in other games which have received certification.

[62] The uncensored version of the game was also banned in Ireland by the Irish Film Classification Office for a short time due to "gross, unrelenting and gratuitous violence", but was later allowed in its cut form under a PEGI "18" rating.

[74] Mikel Reparaz from GamesRadar stated that "if you're in the mood for something creepy and horrific that'll leave you feeling a little dirty, Manhunt 2's still-shocking murders and eerie, is-it-real-or-am-I-just-insane storyline won't disappoint.

"[12] 1UP.com stated that "really, the game warrants a 4 [out of 10] because it's technically playable and, despite its best efforts, probably won't plunge the industry into a period of navel-gazing and political sanction.

"[79] Ars Technica's Michael Thompson echoed similar thoughts, writing in a retrospective piece in 2009 that the controversy surrounding Manhunt 2 "was more interesting than the game itself.