Even years after its initial release, there are still misconceptions about what Manhunt really is (the game, not the website site, although that is scary also). Released in the fall of 2003 on the PS2, Xbox, and PC, the game combines elements from the action and survival horror genres while primarily taking its gameplay cues from the stealth genre. The game puts you in the role of James Earl Cash, a criminal that has been sentenced to death row. During his execution by lethal injection, Cash is merely tranquilized and brought to the roughest part of Carcer City that has been blocked off for The Director's sick and twisted version of The Running Man. Communicating to Cash via headset and watching Cash through an omnipresent network of surveillance cameras, The Director (voiced by Brian Cox) barely introduces himself and tells Cash that he needs listen to every command he is given and do as he's told if he wants to stay alive. The Director promises Cash his freedom at the end of the "game," but only if he does as he's told. Throughout the earliest conversations with The Director, it becomes obvious that this is all a set up for the most elaborate snuff film ever conceived and that Cash has no choice but the play along with the deadly game in front of him.

With the basics of the plot established, the player then controls Cash through a third person view as he sneaks around each dark alley while battling the local gangs that patrol each area. As a very unique take on the stealth genre, Manhunt leaves behind Solid Snake's high-tech gadgetry and Tenchu's ninja star's in favor of more brutal utensils of death. Ever seen a game feature a plastic bag as weapon? How about a shard of glass? Cash's weapons may be primitive, but they are still very effective. If Cash is able to sneak up on any of his targets for a stealth kill the player is "rewarded" with finishing move that makes Mortal Kombat look tame. From beheadings to acts inspired by Lorena Bobbitt, these kills are swift, vicious, and horrific. In a stroke of absolute genius, Rockstar choose to heighten these moments with uneven camera cuts along with video blurs and distortions you might see on an old VHS tape (think of a more 80's version of Grindhouse). It pushes the "ok at the time" visuals into a more timeless league, if only for a few seconds. It's a trick that is so completely effective that it makes players question if they are playing as Cash, or simply acting as the disembodied Director.

A lot of things have been said about the game's over the top displays of violence, but few talk about the game's incomparable sense of tension and suspense. The version of the game that I played was on the original Xbox which allowed you to use the Xbox headset to listen to all The Director's orders. Aside from the standard "go here, kill this" type of dialog you would expect to hear from the director, you'll hear some other things that will make you wonder if The Director is enjoying this a little too much... yeah, in the dirty way. The headset gave me another surprise when I attempted to sneak up on a foe and I sneezed into the mic within a few feet of him. The in-game character "heard" me, turned around and promptly stomped on my ass. After a bit of poking around, I discovered that higher levels of difficulty increased the mic sensitivity to the point that I would have hold my breath during the final steps before snapping someone's neck. These gimmicks with the headset are cheap and unimpressive from a technical standpoint, but their inclusion in the game help propel the suspense beyond anything else in the genre and brought an unsettling amount of immersion to the game that that I haven't seen replicated since.
It's this level of dedication to keeping the player on the edge of their seat that makes me overlook some of Manhunt's lacking qualities. The level designs tend to get repetitive, the AI isn't suited well for some level types, and the story spirals downward towards the end, but the entire experience as a whole is so taut and unyielding it's easy to see past these minor complaints. Since the game's scares rely on the brutality of man, and not creatures from other worlds, the concept and visuals have aged comparatively well. Just like any good horror movie the title remains as potent today as it was on it's initial release, allowing anyone picking it up for the first time to be just as disgusted, creeped out, and downright frightened by it as someone that played Manhunt back in 2003.