Tony Blair wades into Resistance row

British Prime Minister expresses his opinion on the Church of England's protest against Sony's use of Manchester Cathedral in Resistance.

The row between the Church of England and Sony intensified today as British Prime Minister Tony Blair stated that he agreed with MP Tony Lloyd that the use of the Manchester Cathedral in hit game Resistance: Fall of Man was "in bad taste, and very insulting."

Yo Blair!

Over the weekend, the Church of England accused Sony of "desecration" over scenes from the PlayStation 3 shooter in which players gun down hostile alien forces. The Bishop of Manchester, Nigel McCulloch, said that Sony had not sought permission for using images of the church, and that in light of Manchester's gun crime problem, the images were "highly irresponsible."

During yesterday's Prime Minister's Question Time session in Parliament, the issue was raised by Tony Lloyd, the Member of Parliament for Manchester Central. Lloyd asked the PM if he agreed that Sony's use of images of Manchester Cathedral "extolled gun violence," and was insulting to both the Church of England and the general population.

The PM replied that he did, in fact, agree, and commented, "It is important that any companies engaged in promoting such goods have some sense of responsibility and some sensitivity to the feelings of others." Blair went on to add that it was an "immensely difficult area" and that he expected the debate to go on for a significant period. He concluded, "I agree with him: I think that it is important that people understand that there is a wider social responsibility, as well as simply responsibility for profit."

Earlier in the week, Sony had stated that it had opened a dialogue with Church officials in an attempt to resolve the issue. However, the dean of Manchester Cathedral, the Very Rev. Rogers Govender, told reporters at a news conference that this had not happened, according to the Associated Press.

Govender said, "We believe a silent response on the issue is not acceptable behaviour. Today I want to appeal directly to the people of Japan to help us put pressure on Sony to respond."

Sony Computer Entertainment spokesperson Nanako Kato confirmed to the AP that the company began direct talks with the Church on June 12 or 13, and is taking the church's views "seriously."

756 Comments

  • visionedorange

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 9:41 am PT

    yaaa sony, why ya gotta be like that and do that? geezzz, lol wow, nobody cares what the church ever thinks anyways

  • Black_Chaos

    Posted Aug 5, 2007 4:27 pm PT

    oh no after playing this game i now want to go out an buy a gun to kill aliens, an permission to use it =S do you know how many buildings are in this game. plus bogan79 is right tony blair is a wanker

  • bogan79

    Posted Aug 4, 2007 10:18 pm PT

    Blair is a tosser

  • GCN49

    Posted Jul 9, 2007 10:05 pm PT

    I can see this both ways. It is just a building, but on the flip side it is a very important, very specific building. If Sony didn't ask, it was an oversight on their part. If they did, and this whole mess as about Sony not inquiring at the 'correct' level of the church's hierarchy of leadership, then that's not Sony's fault. Also, being that this was a video game, and not, for instance an action film, it's getting more attention than warranted, which I blame on the politicians.

  • darkdaej

    Posted Jul 8, 2007 1:03 pm PT

    Raptorkid_47: I know what you mean, but games are still media just like tv shows, comics or movies. the content included must have all the proper permissions for use, and if any misuse is done (as in this case) then it is only normal that a religious group that preaches peace (the church of england in this case) has a right not to want to see its church represented as a ruin whose sole purpose is granting the character cover while he destroys a bunch of aliens. the gun crimes in manchester is only a catalyst for this whole thing, but its still understandable why this happened in the first place. as i stated earlier, be thankful the holy edifice in the game is not mecca, there would have been deaths involved if it had been.

  • raptorkid_47

    Posted Jul 8, 2007 5:42 am PT

    people complain that we, as gamers, are becoming too involved in games, and then they go and do something like this! i agree with NOT - E - N - E: its a f***king game for f**ks sake, as in VIRTUAL; NOT REAL! get a f**king LIFE!

  • ScarSlasher

    Posted Jun 30, 2007 7:49 pm PT

    If memory serves me correctly, Sony says they sought all permissions necessary. Why is the church fussing, then? Evidentally, Sony did.

    This artice seems strangely "Anti-Sony". Putting the "seriously" in quoation marks as if it were sarcastic. Putting "had not sought permission" not only in bold, but as a hyperlink.

    This place needs to be more unbiased.

    Still, if Sony failed to obtain a certain permission, IT'S AN ACCIDENT!
    If this isn't just a ploy on behalf of the church of england, what I think what happened is that they got permission from the Manchester Cathedral manager, but not from the network it operates under (the church of england).

  • darkdaej

    Posted Jun 30, 2007 10:14 am PT

    @ cubehouse:

    Mostly the grudge is on the fact that the bishop of the church was not consulted. he is the one who LEGALLY manages the place and his consent would have been required. I'm certain the church would have given its consent, but its the fact that no one even bothered to ask THEM if they wanted the church in there or not.

  • Cubehouse

    Posted Jun 29, 2007 3:21 pm PT

    Didn't they use one of the British cathedrals to film Harry Potter in?
    Harry Potter being about WIzards and Witches and was banned in a lot of christian schools here in UK...
    How come a story about something completely blashthomous is allowed, but a story about out nation trying to defend themselves against an alein species is somehow wrong...

  • darkdaej

    Posted Jun 29, 2007 5:26 am PT

    Kane04

    free advetise...

    people love this kinda stuff...

    if you say to someone:
    dont watch this movie, the guy is gonna see it..

    ITS A GAMEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE !


    even if its a game, its still media, and it communicates ideas and opinions as much as a book or movie would. The complaints about the use of that church are justified. and also, let me point out that if instead of england, the game would have been set in saudi arabia and the church of manchester replaced with mecca, you'd have mobs of angry muslims protesting and a few deaths would surely be involved.

  • tecsom

    Posted Jun 28, 2007 6:44 am PT

    I think most people are missing the point. Its not about Iraq or Iran or Tony Blair. Its about a company not seeking permission to use a building not belonging to them to use as a site for a violent video game. The place used happens to be a place of worship and wether you are relgious or not we should all hope to live in a society where resepect is shown to regions no matter of creed or colour. Yes, its a game, but my right to play it shouldnt overide anothers to be offended, within reason. They should have asked, they didnt.

  • Kane04

    Posted Jun 27, 2007 8:11 pm PT

    free advetise...

    people love this kinda stuff...

    if you say to someone:
    dont watch this movie, the guy is gonna see it..

    ITS A GAMEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE !

  • crazygame2

    Posted Jun 27, 2007 1:39 pm PT

    Oh for **** sake, they showed a ruined image of manchester cathedral, they never whent there to do anything. They disnt have a protest about the da vinci code which if you think about it is worse it do smething like thta in a cathedral. And what about all these war films showing bombed places. Why do they care about a home for an imaginary man. They are basiccally showing what would happen if an out burst like that did happen.

  • not-e-n-e

    Posted Jun 27, 2007 10:49 am PT

    IT'S NOT FREAKIN REAL! WHAT DOES IT MATTER! UHHH wow, why cant these people just leave it alone and admit that they've blown it way out of proportion, i mean it's a video game for f*(@s sake!

  • Pooball87

    Posted Jun 27, 2007 7:33 am PT

    its **** set in a different timeline so its not insulting at all, the church have done worse things in the past then shooting like...6 aliens out of the hundreds in that level. Lets just think about when they tried to colonise india or something eh? and now they want to talk about ethics?

  • beastmbardner

    Posted Jun 27, 2007 2:00 am PT

    Tony Blair is a hypocrite n an (insert swear word). Let's massacre Iraq, look for an excuse to invade Iran but play funny-buggers about a computer game that will result in 0 deaths, 0 injuries and 0 harm to anyone. The hate I have for this idiot is indescribeable.

  • StraeDog

    Posted Jun 26, 2007 12:26 pm PT

    Don't you love how a few old and cranky people in the Church of England can cause people to think "OMG, all Christians suck and the basis for their belief must be wrong since there are a couple of them making a fuss over nothing!!!!" Do I think the church is being silly in this case? Heck yes I do. But I'm not gonna let a few people in one religion determine how I view all of the people in that religion. There are easily offended idiots in every religion, even in atheism.

  • gamingangsta

    Posted Jun 26, 2007 10:30 am PT

    matty-gamer no such thing s as aliens and if there are aliens how can u know if tehy bad or if they smarter than humans

  • superfreak937

    Posted Jun 26, 2007 10:26 am PT

    drkr zen you are exactly right!!!

  • kalkhaja

    Posted Jun 26, 2007 5:47 am PT

    Its... just....a....game.... Tony Blair just wants attention and is doing this to gain popularity in the UK amongst convervative and religious people, so they don't like the next PM...

  • Drkr_Zen

    Posted Jun 25, 2007 5:51 pm PT

    "Video games =\= reality."

    Exactly.

    People get too worked up over fiction. OMG! The black guy died first in that slasher film! Racism. OMG! Those buggers are shootin' aliens in a virtual recreation of our church! Desecration. You don't see me throwing my arms up 'cuz some white guy got killed in Halo 2.. OMG! I'm going to sue.. Bungie don't like white people.

    I'm reminded of a Seth Macfarlene joke about staying away from the church and keeping your feet firmly planted in science.

  • Col-Neil

    Posted Jun 25, 2007 4:30 pm PT

    mercenar3 put it best its just sheer greed on the part of the church

  • mercenar3

    Posted Jun 25, 2007 4:23 pm PT

    translation: we should get paid for having our cathedral in your game!

  • Matty_gamer

    Posted Jun 25, 2007 3:09 pm PT

    Some day if world is really attacked by aleins and there are aliens in that church as well. I wonder these church persons considering the deed of killing the Aliens inside the church unethincal.

  • lulu52

    Posted Jun 25, 2007 2:33 pm PT

    Hehe, they are taking the curch's views "seriously"

  • xerxes5678

    Posted Jun 25, 2007 2:02 pm PT

    Video games =\= reality.

    Grow a thicker skin people, and maybe you should focus on this "gun problem" in the real world before attacking a form of entertainment.

  • Fax_Modem

    Posted Jun 25, 2007 9:59 am PT

    It seems everyone is out to take stabs at computer-games these days.

  • fenrirx

    Posted Jun 25, 2007 3:16 am PT

    Tons of games use realistic locations. Why is this any different? It's make believe. There are hundreds of books and films that do the same yet they don't seem to be hauled up for it.

  • arussell18

    Posted Jun 25, 2007 1:51 am PT

    If the church gets its ways and the game is re called for changes would you send it back?

    I know I wont

  • Xcrave

    Posted Jun 24, 2007 12:48 pm PT

    if ya dnt like the idea of killin aliens in a church dont by the game because there are much bigger issues to deal with in the world than video games

  • simsalisivan

    Posted Jun 23, 2007 8:24 pm PT

    For gods sake you're trying to save humanity in the game. You're "cleansing" the church of aliens.

  • Anamosa41

    Posted Jun 23, 2007 2:57 pm PT

    It's really not a big deal. Heck, I'm a Christian and I own the game!

  • marojado

    Posted Jun 23, 2007 9:51 am PT

    Supreme_Isagawa, i'm thinking he probably means moss side and is just tarring the entirity of Manchester with the same brush. And although Manchester was dubbed Gunchester in the 90s, it's gun crimes are actually dropping. That said, i fail to see how this game is any more controversial than any other standard FPS.

  • mrjohno

    Posted Jun 22, 2007 2:43 pm PT

    sony should add a few bishops in the church to kill via an update to make this bull worth arguing about!

  • 007stu007

    Posted Jun 22, 2007 9:49 am PT

    What people forget is that for many years now there have been serious problems with alien infestation in Manchester an d this game opens up some old wounds. Seriously though, I don't remember blair complaining about the representation of Korea in Mercenaries, and there is a tad more danger there.

  • chrisj

    Posted Jun 22, 2007 3:52 am PT

    Any one who buys this game i don't think cares about all this mumbo jumbo of god, they just wont to kill aliens and see some cool guns. as for thaose who do care DONT PLAY THE GAME IF YOUR SO DISGUSTED.

  • solvelk

    Posted Jun 21, 2007 4:49 pm PT

    Lol, get over it man. It's just a bit of fun...People are to damn serious these days =(

  • Depresso

    Posted Jun 21, 2007 4:48 pm PT

    if anything they get more people to want to see it with all this publicity.
    And Tony Blair, well he does his usual politically correct speech without ever achieving anything, same as always.

  • IQT786

    Posted Jun 21, 2007 3:01 pm PT

    blair blair whean are you gona go we dont want you anymore you allways make the wrong choices

  • psymon_05

    Posted Jun 21, 2007 12:46 pm PT

    It's all just people reading too much into everything. Chill out, it's a good level!

  • Cityboi415

    Posted Jun 21, 2007 4:21 am PT

    Someday when aliens arrive to Earth people will understand haha

  • Range_Finder

    Posted Jun 20, 2007 11:54 am PT

    Religion has no place in politics or games, and manchester having a gun crime problem should not mean that it cant be used as a setting in a game which features combat otherwise there would be nowhere on Earth that COULD be used. This sort of interference by politicians and religious groups really annoys me no end!

  • keironshaw24

    Posted Jun 20, 2007 10:20 am PT

    I can honestly see a PM in the future banning games with violence in.. its stupid, who gives them the right to say who is mature enough to see these games, and for cryin out loud the entire city of manchester was in ruins on Resistance FoM, does the church think that sony wer guna make it so the churches wer untouched but everything else was leveled.. yer right, i think they should get a grip and relise relegion causes nothin but chaos in the world and will soon be deminished or will be the cause of the worlds demise! just a few phylisophical words ther from me and will probably cause some kinda stur on this board no doubt!

  • killeryoda85

    Posted Jun 20, 2007 9:14 am PT

    So this games gets a telling off but Manhunt 2 which is totally fictional gets banned....hmmmm

  • Strike_Zer0

    Posted Jun 20, 2007 8:24 am PT

    People are dying daily in Iraq yet the PM takes time out to say that using a building in a fictional storyline in a computer game is wrong?

  • LS-Injection

    Posted Jun 20, 2007 6:07 am PT

    LMAO, MattBelshaw your right there, Tony Blair obviously doesn't care, he's just trying to end his PM career on a good note. People who carry guns in Manchester deffo don't own a PS3 and if they do it is probably stolen from a house buglary lol. Anyway good read news but pathetic row.

  • mattbelshaw

    Posted Jun 19, 2007 10:58 am PT

    who does he think he is?, lol hes the Priminister of the United Kingdom (for the next week or so anyway), im pretty sure that who he thinks he is..... Blair probably couldnt care less about this, he just has to make a big deal about anything remotely un pollitically correct like every other public figour in the UK.. lol and as for inflaming gun crime in manchester, i know the sort of people who carry guns in Manchester, and they do not own PS3s lol, and unlike in the states nutjob kids who get ideas from video games cant steal daddys 45. because the only people with guns in the UK are the police and the drug dealers, dont worry itl all blow over in a month or so and no one will even remember.. sony will stand strong and keep bringing violence into our homes for years and years to come.

  • scima

    Posted Jun 19, 2007 9:39 am PT

    This is far, far more worrying than the Manhunt fiasco. Who the hell does this guy think he is? I hope Sony doesn't cave in...

  • stejmatty

    Posted Jun 19, 2007 9:07 am PT

    omg, its just a video game, people that usualy play these game wont or sumtimes dont even notice that sort of thing, i dont care, because i know its just a video game, its not real Rogers, its a bunch of pixels and fake storylines... dont take action unless sum aliens did come down, and army guys blasted the crap out of them in your church. Then u wud have an oppinion, but i dont think the aliens wud listen, so u wud get blasted too i guess.... hmmm small world.

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