Nintendo, Sony Will Not Accept "Adults Only" Games

AO-rated Manhunt 2 would be unacceptable to Nintendo and Sony

Nintendo tried with the GameCube to shed its image of being a video games system strictly for children by promoting games such as Resident Evil 4. With the widespread success and family appeal of the Wii, Nintendo may be facing another challenge on coming up with the appropriate mix of games for the mature crowd and everyone else.

While Nintendo may be hoping that its developers make mature games for the Wii, it may be getting more than it bargained for with Rockstar Games’ Manhunt 2.

In what could be the game with the most controversy stirred before release, Manhunt 2 is already banned from sale and distribution in the UK, recently also banned in Ireland, and is tentatively rated as AO for adults only by the U.S.-based ESRB.

Although AO-rated games are legally sellable in North America, the approval processes of Nintendo and Sony do not allow such games to appear on its systems. Manhunt 2 is under development for the Wii, PlayStation 2 and PSP, though the game would not be approved for release by Sony or Nintendo.

“Games made for Nintendo systems enjoy a broad variety of styles, genres and ratings. These are some of the reasons our Wii and Nintendo DS systems appeal to such a broad range of people,” read a Nintendo statement to the press. “But as with books, television and movies, different content is meant for different audiences. That's why the ESRB provides ratings to help consumers understand the content of a game before they purchase it. As stated on Nintendo.com, Nintendo does not allow any AO-rated content on its systems.”

Sony Computer Entertainment of America responded to inquiries with a similar response, saying, “Currently it's SCE's policy not to allow the playback of AO rated content on our systems.”

Of the 23 games ever to be given an AO rating by the ESRB, only one has ever appeared on a home console. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, also from Rockstar Games, had its M for mature rating changed to AO following the sexually explicit “Hot Coffee” incident. Copies of the AO rated game were recalled from retailer shelves and replaced with a version of the game without the adults only content.

Even if Sony and Nintendo were to allow the AO version of Manhunt 2 for play on their systems, retailers such as Wal-Mart have a policy of not selling explicit media, which would severely limit the game’s exposure to the buying public.
Reference:Brandon Hill,dailytech