Sony Kneels to Church of England

A letter to the Church of England has PlayStation 3 manufacturer Sony apologizing for the inclusion of a location inspired by the Manchester Cathedral in PlayStation 3 launch title Resistance: Fall of Man, developed by independent studio Insomniac Games and published by Sony Computer Entertainment. "It was not our intention to cause offense by using a representation of Manchester Cathedral in chapter eight of the work," read Sony's letter to Manchester Cathedral dean Rogers Govender according to Associated Press coverage. "If we have done so , we sincerely apologize." An alternate history first person shooter set in the 1950s, Resistance: Fall of Man tells the story of mankind's struggle against the alien-like Chimera, a menace that is invading and overtaking Britain. During the game, players travel through locations set in various British cities, one of which includes an old church modeled after Manchester Cathedral. The inclusion of an area inspired by Manchester Cathedral in the violent game drew protests from the Church of England last week. The Church claimed that Sony and Insomniac had failed to secure approval to recreate the landmark in-game and made several demands in retribution, ranging from an apology and a donation to the cathedral's educational department to the removal or modification of the game to omit the offending assets. While Sony has now officially apologized, the status of the other demands remains unclear. "It is well known that Manchester has a gun crime problem," Manchester bishop Nigel McCulloch said at the time. "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." "We believe a comprehensive viewing of the work will make its content and context clear," detailed Sony's letter, which expressed the manufacturer's doubt "that there is any connection between contemporary issues in 21st century Manchester and the work of science fiction in which a fictitious 1950s Britain is under attack by aliens."