Rockstar has stated that the company was not in any way forced to compromise with the edited version of its Manhunt 2 title, insisting that the final copy retains all elements that are considered key to the original's concept.

Speaking to MTV, Rockstar’s Vice President of Product Development, Jeronimo Barrera, commented, "We are very happy to have the game out, and we feel we kept the original vision and the content and we didn't neuter the game as people say we have.”

"You know, a lot of people just believe this is a murder simulator and all you do is kill people. But the reality is that there's a really strong narrative... There are conversations to be had about this game — intelligent conversations," added Barrera.

"That's what we want to do: get people interested in those [things], rather than ban this game because of X, Y and Z."

Manhunt 2 was previously issued an Adults-Only (AO) rating in the US back in June 2007, barring the game from release on Sony and Nintendo platforms. Rockstar later submitted an edited version to the ESRB, allowing for a Mature (M) rating, with the game finally seeing release on October 30.

Despite following similar measures in the UK, the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) has rejected all efforts from Rockstar to receive the game a PAL release.

In related news, Barrera also hinted at the possibility of releasing a multiplayer title in the series, adding, "That's a very interesting question. ... Who knows where the Manhunt series is going to go? And that's definitely something that warrants some exploring on our part for sure."

Manhunt 2 is now available for purchase on PS2, PSP and Wii.