Well that's probably true, if they get the drop down to the M rating it will likely outsell the first with all the press it's getting.  My point was simply that this is not the Wii's GTA, it's not a maintream game that appeals to both casual and hardcore like GTA.  That's not to say there won't be something like that eventually for the Wii (maybe even by Take Two, take a look at their statement that they are concentrating development on Nintendo over the next year), but this will not be that game.

I've been saying from the beginning, Nintendo will be sorry for releasing this game...

"Videogame console teaches murder! The dangers of the Nintendo Wii, on page 36"

One game does not change the trend of mini-games and games designed for kids.

I hope the Wii does get more games like Manhunt 2, though.  I look forward to playing it. 

 Free advertising

Here's how this will all go down from here on:

1. Rockstar removes and edits some content and re applies for a rating.
2. ESRB gives it an M rating.
3. Game gets released everywhere it should and now has hype surrounding it.

It's all good for Rockstar to boost sales, but I don't think it is that good for Nintendo this is getting dangerously close to too controversial because of the controls and the whole 'murder simulator' crap that's gonna be talked about and it might turn off parents from buying it since the sensationalist media stories will be all they hear about it and they'll overreact and it will negatively impact their decision to buy a Wii...

I bet you anything the Wii version gets the brunt of the attack from the 'moral' crowd on this game and that the Wii will be mentioned a lot more in the headlines than the actual name of the game as a console that makes it possible to simulate executions.

And this automatically doesn't right? Since you've played the game... oh wait you haven't....

 Nintendo isn't releasing the game. Rockstar is. So you have wrong from the beginning.

 It's on the Wii people will associate it with the Wii not rockstar because it's the console that is letting you do the executions...

We're talking about the general populace here who are not very aware of gaming information.

Rockstar's dedication to pushing the envelope may finally have reached its limit in the current political/cultural climate.

It seems they have two choices:

1) Release the game AO for the hardcore audience and lose money on it (maybe make it mail-order only? That would probably satisfy the audience that wants it uncut, without having to deal with the retail resistance)

2) Tone the game down (if that's even possible) to get an M rating

I expect we'll see a delay (it was scheduled for 7/10 release) while they figure out if they can make it more clearly a hallucination/fantasy or reduce the gore somehow to take the edge off of it. I don't know if that's really possible. I just have a hard time imagining how they could trim back the content - it really seems to be the whole CONCEPT of the game that's producing such a strong reaction. I suspect if Majesco released "Murdering Mama" it would get a similar response, even with simple, obviously non-realistic graphics.

I'm not sure how I feel personally about this one -- I was planning to pick it up, more as an over-the-top "THIS one takes the cake" conversation piece than a game to sit down and finish. But it has gotten good reviews, and I'd rather see it make it out uncut than bowdlerized. Maybe they can appeal the rating and work it out with the ESRB somehow.

What this indicates is that the "M" rating isn't really doing its job -- kids are still getting ahold of games they should not be allowed to play, and so the "AO" rating is being called into service.