Three members of the British clergy label Resident Evil, evil. The clue's in the title...

When you’ve annoyed the clergy, it’s a sad but true fact that you’ve probably just hit the first step to commercial success. Call it a denotation of the first level of moral sensitivity. It will come as no great surprise then, that three prominent members of the British clergy have spoken out against Capcom’s excellent Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles on Wii, labelling it “extreme horror” and intimating that it promotes evil.

The three Bishops – Bishop Bryant of Jarrow, Bishop of Burnley, Rt Rev John Goddard and Archdeacon Brian Smith, Sodor and Man have all said the game is making violence and the occult in youth culture acceptable.

Spokesman for Capcom, Leo Tan has countered reasonably, stating that “this is scaremongering and typical religious hysteria. You cannot blame society’s ills on videogames. It’s just absurd. Most games (and movies) like Resident Evil show characters fighting evil not supporting it. Unfortunately the clergy is showing a lack of understanding of the videogames industry and is too quick to splash the holy water and lump videogames players into stereotypical boxes.“

A good point well made. Why certain sectors of society who have no first-hand experience of videogames feel the urge to comment irrespective of knowledge is beyond us.

Tan added: “Videogames are entertainment and like horror movies or other scary films they are covered by a ratings system,” added Leo Tan. “Resident Evil, for example, is a 15 and not suitable for anyone under that age. Parents have to be trusted to adhere to these age restrictions and use common sense. Videogames cannot be blamed for society’s ills but we understand the concerns, it’s just that they are unfounded and using videogames as a bit of a scapegoat.”

Indeed.