Critics argued that the AO rating was unfairly applied to a game that, were it a film, would likely have received an R or NC-17 rating with ease. The controversy forced the industry to confront the maturity of its audience, acknowledging that games were no longer just for children, yet were still bound by the distribution chains of "family-friendly" retailers.

: Certain brutal animations, such as the "pliers" execution where a character's nose is ripped off, are restored to their original graphic state. Facial Deformation