Home
Twitter
RSS
Newsletter
Chris Leigh
14 Jun, 2007

British PM: Sony "must have some sense of responsibility"

PS3 News | Backs Church of England in Resistance dispute.
British Prime Minister Tony Blair has chimed in on the Sony vs Church of England dispute, and appeared to agree with the Church's complaints over Sony depicting Manchester Cathedral in Resistance: Fall of Man without prior consent.

Blair was confronted about the issue at Wednesday's Prime Minister's Questions by Tony Lloyd, the Member of Parliament for Manchester Central. "When large organisations like Sony find their copyright has been breached, they're very quick to use the law," Lloyd pointed out to the PM.

"Would the Prime Minister agree with me then that when Sony used images of Manchester Cathedral as part a game which extols gun violence, this was not only in bad taste but also very, very insulting to not simply the Church of England, but people across the land who think it's inappropriate that big corporations behave in this way?"

In reply, Blair adopted pretty much the same line, telling Parliament, "I agree with my honourable friend. I think it's important that any of the companies engaged in promoting these types of goods have some sense of responsibility and also some sensitivity to the feelings of others. I think this is an immensely difficult area, the relationship between what happens with these games and its impact on young people.

"I've no doubt this debate will go on for a significant period of time, but I do agree," he continued. "I think it is important that people understand there is a wider social responsibility as well as an interior responsibility for profits."

So, the Church of England, the British Prime Minister - the question is, whose hackles can Sony raise next? Answers on a postcard, please.

Related Resistance: Fall of Man Content

Resistance BAFTA nomination 'a disgrace'
09 Oct, 2007 Church of England takes aim – again.
Sony responds to Church of England
11 Jun, 2007 Serious business.
Church of England unhappy at Sony
11 Jun, 2007 Apology wanted.
27 Comments
4 years ago
I haven't been around the forums in a while...

I'll say this:

I have no problem with the game depicting a cathedral, as there are many forms of media (films, novels, etc.) that also depict scenes of violence in religious buildings, and they are not regulated.

That said, having a bit of respect for something that millions of people worldwide consider to be important is not a lot to ask, and the religion-bashing that goes on whenever this sort of news comes up really f***ing annoys me.

I'm all for religion having a sense of humour about itself, and it should relax a lot on a bunch of issues, but damn it, when people attack those who respect reigion or religious institutions...
Says more about those people than anything else - if you take offence to this comment, then it's because I took offence to something you may have said.



Now, I'm not an Anglican, so I have no personal qualm with Sony using a Church of England cathedral in their game.

Had it been a Greek Orthodox church, I'd probabl still not be annoyed, so long as there was nothing to it that explicitly went out of its way to insult or undermine something that is central to the very culture of many people.



Moral of the story?

Sony hasn't done anything wrong here.
It's fiction.
And it's not attacking anything about any religion - it's depicting conflict in a cathedral.

I mean, 'Eternal Darkness' for the GCN had levels in a big cathedral, AND one of them was during WWI (I think) - nobody said anything then.
It's attention-seeking, yes.

That said, some people decide that when they disagree with something, that it's their right to insult or undermine, and that might offend some people.

Just keep it in mind.



And that's my first post in weeks (maybe months?).
4 years ago
^ ^ ^

The fact is the Church of England are being whining little bitches about something that quite frankly they don't have a leg to stand on and not a big deal. They opened themselves up to criticism.

The pic I posted was just a light hearted joke, as in funny haha, move on.
4 years ago
I wasn't targeting you renegaesx.
The pic was funny.

I was directing my annoyance at somebody who was far more explicit and offensive.

Anyway.
Add Comment
Like this news?
Share it with this tiny url: http://palg.nu/3hb

N4G : News for Gamers         Twitter This!

Digg!     Stumble This!

| More
  Pre-order or buy:
    PALGN recommends: www.Play-Asia.com

Australian Release Date:
  Out Now
European Release Date:
  Out Now
Publisher:
  Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.
Developer:
  Insomniac Games

Read more...
Currently Popular on PALGN
Australian Gaming Bargains - 08/12/11
'Tis the season to be bargaining.
R18+ Legislation
R18+ Legislation
Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm Generations Preview
Hands on time with the game. Chat time with the CEO of CyberConnect 2.
PALGN's Most Anticipated Games of 2007
24 titles to keep an eye on during 2007.
PALGN's Most Anticipated Games of 2008
And you thought 2007 was populated.