Controversial Rockstar stealth thriller where covert killing is at the gameplay core. The oppressive atmosphere, cat-and-mouse gameplay and snuff film satire are disturbing but brilliant. A title that dares where few dared, unfairly judged for its violence.
Your verdict
Category
Action Adventure1 player18+
Description
A stealth action game by Rockstar North released in 2003 (US, Europe). Death-row convict James Earl Cash is saved to become the unwilling lead in a snuff film commissioned by the Director. A raw atmosphere, melee executions graded by stealth and one of the PS2's most controversial games.
Manhunt review
4/5
Art direction
★★★★★
"Striking"
4/5
Music
★★★★★
"Excellent"
MAX
Story
★★★★★
"Masterful"
Forced to kill for the camera of a deranged director, a death-row convict crosses a night of horror staged like a snuff film. Disturbing by design, the tale mounts a chilling satire of spectacle violence and voyeurism. Uneasy and radical, it provokes as much as it fascinates, and has lost none of its charge.
European edition of Manhunt, the one that crystallised the controversy: pulled from the shelves of several British retailers after an intense media campaign, the game earned a forbidden-fruit status across the Channel that still feeds its desirability. For collectors, the PAL release carries this history of censorship and delisting, distinct from its American counterpart. The Rockstar title stays sought after as much for its scandalous aura as for its uncompromising stealth gameplay.
A questionable morality
It's hard to be more upfront: you execute pursuers from the shadows on the orders of a director who films the whole thing like a snuff movie. The game leans into deliberate discomfort and sleazy satire, so you press on while half-hiding behind the artistic argument, aware you're taking part in a spectacle whose cruelty is precisely the point.
Is Manhunt still worth playing in 2026?
A stealth action game from Rockstar, Manhunt plunges the player into an interactive snuff movie where a condemned man must execute gangs with graded brutality to survive, hunted by a sadistic director. The sordid mood, the tension of stealth kills and the assumed unease make it a striking, provocative work. The extreme violence, the repetition and a dated PS2 production reserve it for a knowing audience. A dark stealth game to recommend for fans of disturbing experiences and unhealthy tension.
