Storm in a teacup or a step too far for Sony?

[Mark]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/manchester/6736809.stm

The Church of England is considering legal action against entertainment firm Sony for featuring Manchester Cathedral in a violent PlayStation computer game.
I'm going to sit on the fence on this one. I'm not one to support nannying PC gone mad, but the Church probably do have a point.

Over to the gamers for comment. :)

PS - Mods - this fits multiple forums, feel free to move if I chose the wrong one :-)

[Haly]

Depends entirely on if Sony took all the right legal actions which by the sounds of things is undecided.
It's been blown out of proportion though, to make the first news story on a news bulletin I heard earlier was ridiculous considering the amount of terrible things that happen every day.
Plus the game came out in March in the UK so why on earth did the Church take so long to notice?
Edit: I see it's top story on the BBC site now too, good grief.

[Flibster]

So the Germans in Medal of Honor *iirc* using the church as a base of fire with the MG42 in it is fine?
Or the violence in Mafia... or Hitman...

Add to that the fact that religion is responsible for more man made death than anything else.

I think the main problem is the fact that they have based the church in the game on a real church. Make a patch that makes it a fantasy church - job done.

Plus...

It's a sodding game! *awaits Jack Thompson to say it's a mudser simulator*

It's a rare thing - but on on Sony's side here.

Simon/~Flibster

[Stan_Lite]

One question I would like to know the answer to is: is it clear within the game that the battleground is Manchester cathedral?

If so, the church may have a point - having said that, the overwhelming majority of gamers have the ability to realise that, just because they shoot stuff in a cathedral in a game, this is not acceptable behaviour in real life. Those who cannot make this distinction and commit some form of atrocity would have done so anyway - perhaps in a different place but would have done so nonetheless.

If it is not clear in the game that the battlefield is Manchester cathedral, the church have cocked things up big style - I doubt that most of the people playing the game would be able to recognise the inside of Mancehster cathedral from the images in the game (I know I wouldn't be able to) - maybe they feel they need the publicity and that the old adage applies that "There is no such thing as bad publicity".

Stan :)

[Goose]

With the CoE's murky past in mind, I think I had probably best keep my opinion to myself.

[semi-pro waster]

I read nonsense like this For a global manufacturer to re-create one of our great cathedrals with photo-realistic quality and then encourage people to have guns battles in the building is beyond belief and highly irresponsible and start to wonder about people. So everything people do in games is encouraging them to do it in real life? Actually that reminds me, must return the car I stole last night after a pitched battle with police for running over pedestrians. ;) Seriously, how stupid do people think gamers are.

[petemc]

Plus the game came out in March in the UK so why on earth did the Church take so long to notice?

It took them a while to reach that level ;)

[Haly]

It took them a while to reach that level ;)

;D

[Garp]

http://cad-comic.com/comic.php?d=20070613

C+A+D wades in on the debate ;D

[Mark]

Bill Gates, repent all ye sins. ;D

http://cad-comic.com/news.php?i=1422

Pretty much sums up everything we've said. :)

[Haly]

Ctrl Alt Del rocks :D
I'm a total fanboy of theirs, got all the books signed, a few t-shirts and just had the collector's DVD arrive that I ordered months back. :D

[Tak]

Sony apologises over violent game (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/manchester/6758381.stm)

The letter from Sony said: "We do not accept that there is any connection between contemporary issues of 21st Century Manchester and a work of science fiction in which a fictitious 1950s Britain is under attack by aliens.

;D ;D I love sarcastic apologies ;D ;D