Where Politics And Video Games Collide

"There’s a perception among the creators of media… that if for any reason, you are unable to market your wares in the manner you desire, you are being “censored.” …no one’s stopping you from making the game you want to make. But the customers — the retailers — aren’t always buying what you’re selling."

I have to disagree with this. Simply because the censorship doesn't come from the government doesn't mean it's not censorship. No console maker allows AOs, and as of now, retailers won't carry AOs. He calls retailers the customers, which is completely incorrect. Retailers buy the product, but only to resell it to the actual customers. Had Manhunt 2 with an AO rating been something Take2 could've gotten to market, I suspect it would have sold. It wasn't given the chance to get to market that way. They could've released it uncut for PC, but at a massive hit to the returns on their investment in the game. If there's no MARKET for the title, and you go out of business trying to sell it, that's not censorship. If your market is cut off from you by forces other than the market itself (the console manufacturers, and retailers), then it's censorship. Saying, "Sure, make your AO rated game, we just won't let you actually sell it!" is very little different from saying, "Make your AO rated game, and we'll fine you out of business." The latter is overt, but the former is more pernicious.

All that said, I find Manhunt (and virtually every other Rockstar game) repugnant. I'd just rather have the market tell them that, than the console manufacturers.