Rockstar Games has given the world some of the best games in recent memory, including Grand Theft Auto III and GTA: Vice City. Their combination of mission-based play and open-ended persistent world gave gamers hours of enjoyment exploring the different aspects of city life, including hookers, car-jacking, and sheer mayhem. The latest effort from Rockstar sheds much of that veneer of sophistication and takes the player deep into the seamy underworld of snuff films and gangbangers.

The gameplay of Manhunt is much the same as the recent GTA games, without the vehicles. You are James Earl Cash, a convicted murderer who was sentenced to death. They carry out the execution, but you wake up with a disembodied voice directing you to ever greater acts of violence, all for the entertainment of a snuff film director and his sick, twisted following. This game is not for the faint at heart. The sheer volume of profanity and crudity surpass all but the vilest hip hop acts today. You don't want to see your kid playing this game.

The killing and executions are marked by a remarkable sameness. The game basically consists of running from shadow to shadow, attracting attention from the milling guards by whistling or rapping your weapon on the nearest wall. When the dumb victim comes closer and then turns his back you slink out and perform one of three degrees of execution. These various methods are dependent on how long you hold the action key down and what weapon you are currently holding. Manhunt has an unique approach to the entry-level weapons, letting you off bigots with a plastic bag, a length of wire, or even a jagged glass shard wielded as a dagger.

If, by some chance, you fail to carry out the execution with enough stealth, you may alert your intended victim to your presence or even attract the attention of his friends. Then you must fight or flee, depending on your odds and your current status. Fighting multiple opponents at once is a quick route to death, as it would probably be in real life. The pacing and realism in this game is therefore substantially more than in the usual shoot-em-ups, where you can wade in guns blazin'. Here, Rambo would get waxed. You have to stick to the script and slink in the shadows.

Initially, I had a lot of trouble getting the mouse to work properly in the game. After an email to the Rockstar/Take Two tech support group, I received instructions that basically asked me to remove every gamepad and joystick from the computer and reboot. After doing so and reinstalling the game in a directory on the root of the drive, I was able to use the mouse. This seems to be a strange and difficult problem, as most PC gamers will have various gamepads and joysticks around. Perhaps there are some conflicts with Manhunt's implementation of DirectX? Regardless, I was able to get it working after several attempts.

One of the more incredible aspects of the game is the integration of the sound into the gameplay. You really must play this game with a headset rather than just the PC speakers. Not only does the voice of the director sound more realistic piped directly into your ear, but the microphone is live, and you can lure the baddies just by calling them or making some sound. This also can work against you, as if you breath too loud, they can hear that too! Talk about sucking you right into the game!

Since the game has very little variety beyond the collection of weapons you find and the various factions you are asked to go through, it is tough to say that Manhunt has real staying power as a game. However, I doubt that anyone is truly playing the game for a complete cinematic entertainment experience. If you ever wanted to know what it would be like to be a slasher/serial killer without all that nasty jail time, this is the way to find out. Just come prepared with a strong stomach and a willingness to listen to verbal sewage.

Graphics: 8.5
Very dark, gloomy settings, appropriate for the urban wasteland Carcer City is supposed to be. As usual, Rockstar paid attention to details like blowing papers, rats scurrying in the shadows, fires burning in barrels, etc.

Sound: 9.5
Very innovative use of the headset/mic to interact with the gameplay. The Xbox version reportedly uses the headset to only relay the directors information to the player, leaving the rest of the audio to the main track. Very immersive.

Concept: 8.1
Not incredibly original and the game/level design seems pretty boring after a while. The sheer volume of profanity is excessive.

Overall: 8.0
Technically solid effort, concept is interesting, the voice interaction is outstanding. However, this would make a much better rental than a title to own. I doubt you will keep playing it over and over again. If you do, you might need to seek counseling...or at least stay away from me and my family.