Recent Manhunt troubles will cost Take-Two Interactive
With Manhunt 2 facing an Adults Only rating in US shores (ESRB had reportedly given Manhunt 2 an AO rating already) and getting banned in the UK, retail sales are sure to suffer quite a blow on the head.
Game Politics decided to ask Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter about what’s his take on Take-Two Interactive‘s financial storm to come. He said that Manhunt 2 would probably generate revenue amounting to US$ 25 million, with an additional US$ 15 million brought about by reorders.
Interestingly enough, Take-Two’s stock closed with a higher value at 20.74, on the same day that the Manhunt 2 fiasco exploded.
Pachter also drew three possibilities on how Take-Two will deal with the Manhunt 2 hullabaloo. The company may:
- Ship the game as is;
- Re-cut the game and try to have the UK ban and/or US Adults Only rating lifted; or,
- Cancel the game altogether.
Don’t worry, Manhunt fans. The video game financial analyst has written off the third option as unlikely, since the costs that Take-Two has spent for developing the game are not recoverable. Shipping the game as is, however, will lower sales; on the other hand, publishing a cut version of the controversial game will cost more, but will give them significantly higher sales at the same time.
With all these in mind, will there ever be another Manhunt game? Pachter thinks that chances of a sequel are improbable.
As for impact on the [Manhunt] franchise, it seems that the violence level is sufficiently offensive to warrant a UK ban and a US AO rating. That canÂ’t be good for the longevity of the franchise.
With Manhunt 2 facing an Adults Only rating in US shores (ESRB had reportedly given Manhunt 2 an AO rating already) and getting banned in the UK, retail sales are sure to suffer quite a blow on the head.
Game Politics decided to ask Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter about what’s his take on Take-Two Interactive‘s financial storm to come. He said that Manhunt 2 would probably generate revenue amounting to US$ 25 million, with an additional US$ 15 million brought about by reorders.
Interestingly enough, Take-Two’s stock closed with a higher value at 20.74, on the same day that the Manhunt 2 fiasco exploded.
Pachter also drew three possibilities on how Take-Two will deal with the Manhunt 2 hullabaloo. The company may:
- Ship the game as is;
- Re-cut the game and try to have the UK ban and/or US Adults Only rating lifted; or,
- Cancel the game altogether.
Don’t worry, Manhunt fans. The video game financial analyst has written off the third option as unlikely, since the costs that Take-Two has spent for developing the game are not recoverable. Shipping the game as is, however, will lower sales; on the other hand, publishing a cut version of the controversial game will cost more, but will give them significantly higher sales at the same time.
With all these in mind, will there ever be another Manhunt game? Pachter thinks that chances of a sequel are improbable.
As for impact on the [Manhunt] franchise, it seems that the violence level is sufficiently offensive to warrant a UK ban and a US AO rating. That canÂ’t be good for the longevity of the franchise.
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