Sony to conduct internal inquiry following dead goat incident

By Games Industry.biz Published 30 April, 2007

We're not sure what else to say.

GamesIndustry.biz has learned that Sony is to conduct an internal inquiry after hitting the headlines for displaying a decapitated goat at a press event for God of War 2.

"It has come to our attention that at The God of War 2 launch showcase held in Athens, Greece, on 1st March 2007, an element of the event was of an unsuitable nature," a spokesperson said.

"Whilst we pride ourselves on creating engaging experiences we are committed to making sure these are appropriate in nature and do not cause offence to either attendees or our consumers in general.

"We are conducting an internal inquiry into aspects of the event in order to learn from the occurrence and put into place measures to ensure that this does not happen again."

As reported by yesterday's Mail on Sunday, pictures of the God of War 2 party showing the headless goat were published in the latest edition of Official PlayStation Magazine.

Some copies have already been sent out to subscribers but the pages in question will be removed from the remaining 80,000 issues.

The Mail on Sunday article alleged that guests at the God of War 2 event "were invited to reach inside the goat's still-warm carcass to eat offal from its stomach" - a report dismissed by Sony as "categorically untrue".

Speaking to GI.biz the spokesperson explained, "In keeping with the theatrical nature of the event, the attendant media were invited to eat a bowl of food that purported to be from the animal - but in fact was a cooked traditional Greek dish."

The spokesperson added that the goat was not slaughtered specifically for the event; the organisers, a Greek production company, purchased the carcass from a butcher.

He observed that Computer Entertainment UK did not play any role in the organisation of the event, and there were no members of the British media were in attendance - including the author of the OPM report.

"The writer of this article did not attend the event and has portrayed the theatre as a literal occurrence," the spokesperson said.

"This is not a true representation of the event, but nevertheless we realise the imagery and the inaccurate description of the event would cause offence and have thus taken action to stop it from circulating."

The spokesperson went on to state that the company was "shocked" to see the article appear in OPM, and immediately contacted Future Publishing to address the issue - not only after being contacted by the Mail on Sunday, as the newspaper implied.

"Sony Computer Entertainment Europe does not in any way, shape or form condone cruelty or mistreatment of animals," he confirmed.

"Sony Computer Entertainment Europe takes the sensitivities of the general public and issues of animal welfare very seriously and is sorry for any offence or distress the event or perception of this event may have caused."

Picture of Games.

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Comments (96) Latest comment 5 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • RandolphScott #1 5 years ago

    the goat was ill anyway. look at its pixellated head

  • Talha #2 5 years ago

    Cruelty to animals = detested, despised, howled in horror at.


    Cruelty to humans = OPEN SEASON! LINE STARTS HERE!

  • Hunam #3 5 years ago

    Its not animal cruelty, its not like they killed the goat there.

    Still pretty fucking stupid mind.

  • X201 #4 5 years ago

    This is what happens when you let The KLF organise your press launch.

  • dirigiblebill #5 5 years ago

    In other news, SEE purchases five hundred strait jackets for its marketing department.

  • SeesThroughAll #6 5 years ago

    If they were well organized among PR and publicity, there would be no need for a bloody inquiry.

  • miiiguel #7 5 years ago

    damn... this is sick. I think I'm gonna puke.

  • Steroyd #8 5 years ago

    LOL

  • vegard #9 5 years ago

    sounds like this event was organized by a norwegian black metal band.

  • Eighthours #10 5 years ago

    So the journo wasn't even there. Scandal.

  • InfiniteFury #11 5 years ago

    The whole things just offal.

  • souljah #12 5 years ago

    Sony really have to make a go-at of improving their PR machine.

  • gizmo #13 5 years ago

    And here I was thinking Sony were only flogging dead horses.

  • repairmanjack #14 5 years ago

    Ah, the classic dead goat sketch...

  • repairmanjack #15 5 years ago

    The Curious Incident of the Goat in the Headlines...

  • gizmo #16 5 years ago

    They must be kidding.

  • MattyD #17 5 years ago

    Nice one, OPM - good to see you're doing your part for games 'journalism' by covering events that... you didn't attend. Fucking smashing. Next up, BBC, live from not Iraq.

  • bonker #18 5 years ago

    Sounds like quite a do! :)

    How do I get myself into a job where I'm fed grapes by topless girls then? (willing to hack head off goat if necessary)

  • repairmanjack #19 5 years ago

    Seriously, what's with all the bleating?

  • MrBiggles #20 5 years ago

    So if I get some sausages from my fridge and scatter them around my desk am I going to get PETA kicking down my door?, it's the very same thing as getting a dead goat from a butchers and putting it on a table.

    People especially hippies need to chill the fuck out and start worrying about the genocide in Sudan or the civil war in Iraq, not a fucking goat.

  • DanWhitehead #21 5 years ago

    This is nothing new. I clearly remember Commodore eviscerating a live dolphin in Swindon town centre to promote the launch of the CD32.

  • yupyup #22 5 years ago

    Just once I want someone to come out and say "Yep, we're all for animal cruelty, but seriously..."

  • belziah #23 5 years ago

    I think Sony should write their marketing cheques directly to Peter Moore.

    I bet they turned down the "mastication for the nation" bloke as to high brow.

  • TheDifficult3rdAlbum #24 5 years ago

    I wonder who's going to be the scapegoat for this.

  • Beano #25 5 years ago

    "the goat was ill anyway. look at its pixellated head "

    Yearh... poor thing!

    Must have escaped a Jeff Minter game!

  • hula hoops #26 5 years ago

    In today's heavily sanitized world, this kind of things is frowned upon. Even one MP tries to make this an even larger war against Sony products. Such an opportunist to have a swipe at the "Evil People who brought Evil Video Games".

    People make mistake, stupid and careless mistake in this case. Whether you find the picture acceptable or distasteful, it doesn't matter. Most people will see this as a PR disaster.

    I feel sorry for Sony. It's just not a good month for them.


  • TelexStar #27 5 years ago

    Is it just me or is the woman on the Mail on Sunday site picture actually naked? It's like a dodgy porn film set. Nice one Sony.

  • cellar_door #28 5 years ago

    Bad taste and Sony advertising go hand in hand. Still this is no reason to get - as Cartman would say "sand in your vagina".

  • Fitzmogwai #29 5 years ago

    Sony, for the love of all that is holy, just put the shovel down and stop digging.

  • Clive_Dunn #30 5 years ago

    This sort of over-reaction really gets my goat.

    /gets coat. It's goat-skin, have it !

  • FlamingCarrot #31 5 years ago

    D'oh! I though you said Goat of War!

  • TriggerHippie #32 5 years ago

    Typical, now gamers will be blamed for cattle mutilations around the world. Jack Thomson will be up in arms about todays youths being trained to make sacrificial offerings of farmyard animals to their pagan game gods.

  • Fitzmogwai #33 5 years ago

    I was ruminating over my initial response though.

  • glaeken #34 5 years ago

    Nice spot there TelexStar. It seems the lady in pic is actually topless with her boobies painted.

    I have to say who ever organized this event is genius.

  • Clive_Dunn #35 5 years ago

    I think they should promote whoever organised this, it looks much more fun than standard launch parties.

  • peterfll #36 5 years ago

    Let me get this right: If you eat meat, you can't disapprove of animal cruelty? And if you do disapprove of mistreating animals, that's wrong too as there's wars and genocide in the world?

    Thanks for all those posters who cleared that up for me and many others.

  • trevd72 #37 5 years ago

    looks like a hellova party, where do you get invites for the next one.

    Does the goat thing leave the door open for accusations of devil worshiping cos i am all for that!!

    I think I have sussed out Sony's strategy. Create bad press concerning you inability to creat good press. This in turn gets you more column inches and loads of rants in forums.

    Bad publicity is actually better than Good publicity.

  • Gurgeh #38 5 years ago

    2006: giant enemy crabs
    2007: giant enemy goats?

  • tonynibbles #39 5 years ago

    @cellar_door
    Bad taste and Sony advertising go hand in hand. Still this is no reason to get - as Cartman would say "sand in your vagina".

    ROFL

    Best. Comment. Evah!

  • kangarootoo #40 5 years ago

    F*cking idiots. And we wonder why so many people viewing gaming as the pursuit of childish morons.

    That is all I have to say.

  • Yaster #41 5 years ago

    looked like one hell of a party

  • kangarootoo #42 5 years ago

    @Yaster

    Yeah it always looks that way when you put a load of models in the same room as aload of drunk devs, but I'll bet you a pound to a penny that hardly anyone got laid.

  • Deoden #43 5 years ago

    Can't believe no-one's said this yet, so I'll do it:

    "This is madness!" "Madness? THIS...IS...SONY!!!"

    (insert flogging a dead goat comment here)
    Edited by 1 at 30/04/07 @ 13:43

  • AcidSnake #44 5 years ago

    Well lucky them...I bet you the amount of people being fired because of this incident will be exactly 160...

  • kangarootoo #45 5 years ago

    @Arbiter

    You know, I'm not sure anyone claimed bad taste was illegal. I think several people claimed it was inappropriate (which it kind of was), several others have claimed it was bloody childish (me included) and yet more claim it was really stupid as far as PR goes (I agree there too).

    You seem to be getting very irate in the defense of some game PR people that decided displaying a dead goat at their press conference was a good idea. Now I agree with you on the hypocrisy of the Daily Mail, but that hardly makes this whole stunt the act of some freedom fighter of the people.

    It was done to make money, and it was thought up by someone who needs some retraining in their job, 'cos it was a shit idea.

  • Scientist #46 5 years ago

    "So if I get some sausages from my fridge and scatter them around my desk am I going to get PETA kicking down my door?, it's the very same thing as getting a dead goat from a butchers and putting it on a table. "

    Your analogy is specious; have you actually seen the picture? Animals in butchers tend to be skinned already.

    "...Hippies need to chill out..."

    I thought that's what hippies told everyone else to do.

  • skillian #47 5 years ago

    Great comment arbiter - that's how the article should have read.

    EG seem content to just tell the news, rather than offer an opinion. I'm not sure if that's site policy, or just how it seems to have ended up.

  • TriggerHippie #48 5 years ago

    This only seems to work for Sony. I butchered 2 cats and pigeon on the altar of my 360 this morning and its still bricked.

  • Hughes. #49 5 years ago

    Some people will be very conflicted over this, who do they hate more, Sony or the Daily Bile? That Keith Vaz chipped in should tilt the scales towards Sony's version of events, still a stupid stunt though. In protest I refuse to play the game thorugh more than 3 or 4 times.

  • Kami #50 5 years ago

    Perhaps we should all help Sony out of the grave it is digging for itself...

  • TriggerHippie #51 5 years ago

    They've undone all the good work their 'Girl taking a dump' ad campaign did.
    Edited by 1 at 30/04/07 @ 13:58

  • zuljin #52 5 years ago

    @skillian
    "EG seem content to just tell the news, rather than offer an opinion."
    Thats what journalism is supposed to be. To inform the world of the facts. If you want an opinion read the comments page.
    Edited by 1 at 30/04/07 @ 13:58

  • andromeda #53 5 years ago

    "People especially hippies need to chill the fuck out and start worrying about the genocide in Sudan or the civil war in Iraq, not a fucking goat."

    fucking spot on

  • Scientist #54 5 years ago

    "EG seem content to just tell the news, rather than offer an opinion."

    Erm, these articles are in the "News" section. There is plenty of room for opinion in the "Speak your brain" section.

    Err, what Zuljin said.
    Edited by 1 at 30/04/07 @ 14:02

  • PearOfAnguish #55 5 years ago

    Has anyone made a joke about the PS3 and flogging a dead goat yet?

    "EG seem content to just tell the news, rather than offer an opinion."

    Are you a Fox News viewer?
    Edited by 1 at 30/04/07 @ 14:03

  • TriggerHippie #56 5 years ago

    *Pokes goat with stick*

    Is this living?
    Edited by 1 at 30/04/07 @ 14:04

  • peterfll #57 5 years ago

    Genocide & War = Worse things ever so no opinions on anything else valid.

    Spot on!

  • TriggerHippie #58 5 years ago

    "In a sense you are right... Here we are on a gamesite mind you... Yes we should be ranting and spouting about atrocities around the world... But here we are on a gamesite... Need I say more?"

    Indeed. I'm willing to bet there might even be places that offer news about just those types of subjects. Hell, they may even have a comments page for those so inclined!
    Edited by 2 at 30/04/07 @ 14:40

  • kangarootoo #59 5 years ago

    @skillian

    "EG seem content to just tell the news, rather than offer an opinion."

    What on earth is wrong with that?! Offering news with an opinion bolted on the side is exactly what the Daily Mail and Fox News are guilty of every day. Thats how you end up with the media structure we have currently, where everyone buys the news paper that agrees with them.

    Is that really what you want here?

    I have my own mind with which I can form an opinion, so I'd prefer just the facts that enable me to do so thanks.

  • neil_likes_bums #60 5 years ago

    next time use a traffic warden and none of us will give a f**k

  • warthog2k #61 5 years ago

    "Nice one, OPM - good to see you're doing your part for games 'journalism' by covering events that... you didn't attend."

    OPM and Journalism? Laughed my head off... (sic)

    see also:
    McDonalds and Fine Cuisine
    Sunny Delight and "Good Stuff for Kids"
    Sony and Marketing

  • kangarootoo #62 5 years ago

    Ah nuts. Seems others have already written the same thing as me. That will teach me to refresh the page.


    @Arbiter

    For the record, I thought the half a cow "art" display was bollox too :)

    Seriously though, stiring up that sort of trouble is what the Daily Mail do. Just like the job og the PR person is to cynically sell their product also. In this case, the Daily Mail are succeeding at their job by overblowing this and selling papers. The Sony PR in this case I suspect failed to do their job effectively.

    I could write "f*cking idiots" about the Daily Mail every single day on these pages. Whereas this incident in contrast is somewhat unique, hence it warranted comment (and condemnation, for being kind of stupid).


    @TriggerHippie

    "Is this living?"

    Hehehe, +1

  • rudedudejude #63 5 years ago

    Can we have some piccies of the topless women please?

  • skillian #64 5 years ago

    "EG seem content to just tell the news, rather than offer an opinion."
    Thats what journalism is supposed to be. To inform the world of the facts. If you want an opinion read the comments page.

    I'd rather get opinion from EG than the usual fanboy froth from the comments section, but yes, you have a valid point.

    As to the "proper journalism" thoughts , I've always though of EG as more of a magazine than a newspaper, where opinion is valued rather than dismissed as bias or favouritism. I mean it's not like they're breaking stories, but more collating news and passing on press releases.

    But as I said, if they want to keep strict news in the news section and save the opinion for the articles, that's fine with me too.

    edit: and if you think EG always keep opinion out of the news stories, you clearly haven't read many of them.
    Edited by 2 at 30/04/07 @ 14:34

  • GitSomE_UK #65 5 years ago

    Well I'm just relieved there were no kids present at the party.

    Kids... geddit? Meehhh



    /orders goat kebab for lunch

  • zuljin #66 5 years ago

    @skillian
    "edit: and if you think EG always keep opinion out of the news stories, you clearly haven't read many of them."

    True. At the end of the day anything you read will be written by someone who has their own bias. Personally, the less I notice of this, the better an article/newspiece in my opinion.

  • gth #67 5 years ago

    Was it dumb? maybe yeah. But all people complaining about this probably still go out and buy the cheapest meat they find and don't think one second about how the animal "lived" and died.

    This goat probably died in a better way than all the meat you eat everyday.

    This sickens me. Wow a dead goat, baaaad sony baaaaad!

  • trevd72 #68 5 years ago

    Just a thought, will this mean that Jeff (god like) Minter will not be working on the PS3 as well?

    Bring on SG.

  • Daymare #69 5 years ago

    "However, a dead animal carcass has the same MORAL weight as a hamburger or a hot-dog, or a steak."

    Ah, so very true Arbiter, couldn't have said it any better:)

  • Yoghurt_Pot #70 5 years ago

    Cynical marketing ploy...

    PS3 just released - check
    New hotly tipped game - check
    Some twat with a goat from PR - check
    Free column inches in mass media publication - check

    jobs a good un, sit back and watch the publicity frenzy and free advertising.

    Nothign to see, move on please.

  • malteaserhead #71 5 years ago

    Daymare
    "However, a dead animal carcass has the same MORAL weight as a hamburger or a hot-dog, or a steak."

    Ah, so very true Arbiter, couldn't have said it any better:)

    ____________________________________

    /Digs up Daymare's nan
    You see where I am going ;)

  • Daymare #72 5 years ago


    Wha, wha, I'm not following.. what's a "nan"?:)

  • El_MUERkO #73 5 years ago

    would the daily mail care so much if they knew it was an asylum seeking goat?

  • kangarootoo #74 5 years ago

    @Daymare

    Your nan is the same as your grandmother.

  • kangarootoo #75 5 years ago

    @WaxBrazillian

    I'm not sure its quite the same. The cops aren't doing that in the name of profit are they?

  • Kami #76 5 years ago

    I'm not big on the whole animal rights movement - don't get me wrong, I think we have to be humane but I also think some people need to grow up and realise that people do eat meat, drink milk, wear wooly jumpers. Animals are farmed for this purpose, and all too many are hypocrites and whine about this stuff whilst tucking into the £2.99 pork loin chops they got from the supermarket that day. I think "animal rights" can sometimes get a bit out of context - of course we have a duty to be humane and protect anything from extinction, and to treat animals with respect (this is common sense though, surely?), but at the same time we must remember and remind people these are not their babies, their children, their friends and family. Common sense takes a back seat to the "cutsey fluffy-wuffy animals". Hypocrites rule and make the decisions for the rest of us. I like animals, I do think lambs are cute and cuddly, I find nature shows fascinating, I have pets and I regularly take them to the vets - I treat my hamsters like people, sadly enough, I love the little ones. However, we must exercise some sense in all of this. I know my hamsters are not human beings. I know people farm for meat and animal produce. I don't pretend that all creatures are defenseless and need us to hold their hands in a nasty world.

    I also think this is a case of common sense and the lack thereof. I'm sorry, but it's like those black/white ads backalong. I refuse to believe that not one person in Sony's PR department objected or at least said, "Guys, I'm not sure on this...". Of course it was going to get the wrong bloody headlines, it wasn't a kill for meat or anything useful - it was an animal people will assume to have been killed for a PR Stunt, and yes, that was a stupid and quite frankly moronic idea that should have been thought through a little better.

    I'm just surprised Sony hasn't disbanded their PR department altogether. Most of us EG regulars could do an infinitely better job for half the cost... that said, a brain-dead gibbon could probably do a better job than Sony's PR department...
    Edited by 2 at 30/04/07 @ 17:14

  • Daymare #77 5 years ago

    A-ha, thanks kangarootoo..

    ...

    Nice point then, malteaserhead;) Unless you were trying to be insulting! /shakes a fist
    Edited by 1 at 30/04/07 @ 16:56

  • kangarootoo #78 5 years ago

    @WaxBrazillian

    I agree insofar as the police action may not have the desired result. But good taste isn't the only issue here.

    My point was that the motive behind the goat escapade was profit. The motive behind the police campaign was to reduce biker deaths.

    So even if the cops were misguided, you can't tar them with the same brush as at least they had honourable motives at heart (and in their case, I think the campaign may actually have a positive effect).

    Furthermore, this GoW2 event just makes gamers look like bloody idiot kids. The cops campaign wasn't supposed to be appealing or funny, it was supposed to be hard hitting and to some degree it was supposed to disgust and shock the viewer. That wasn't the idea with the goat was it?

    "Who would find this funny or appealing?" say the mass market. "Bloody immature teenage boy gamers, thats who" comes the response.

    THAT is what annoys me most about this. It just makes gamers and those that make games look like f*cking immature imbeciles.

  • peterfll #79 5 years ago

    "But all people complaining about this probably still go out and buy the cheapest meat they find"

    I don't. And even those that do still have a valid opinion, yours is not the only one in the universe, thank god.

  • kangarootoo #80 5 years ago

    ""But all people complaining about this probably still go out and buy the cheapest meat they find"

    I don't."

    Me neither.

  • Captain Jax #81 5 years ago

    No such thing as bad publicity.

    Watch sales of GoW2 go through the roof.

  • valli #82 5 years ago

    Sony to conduct internal inquiry following dead goat incident
    Without doubt, the best god damn article name in the history of EG.

  • Kami #83 5 years ago

    I wouldn't either it must be said... you have to question why you can get a medium sized chicken for £2.99, or six pork chops for £2.50 these days at supermarkets...

  • ChocNut #84 5 years ago

    Does no one else think this improves Sony's image?

    I do.

    Seriously. Microsoft need to cut up a kitten or something. Now.

    Don't say you wouldn't laugh.

  • secombe #85 5 years ago

    Sony....

    Daily Mail...


    Honestly, my head will explode if I think about this too much (Sony are welcome to the corpse when they need to promote Crash Bandicoot 7), who the hell do you side with when these giants of the hated world collide?!

  • captainrentboy #86 5 years ago

    Well done Daily Mail I'm sure your front page spread really harmed God Of War's sales over the last few days, just like all those old stories about Manhunt did...... :/
    I love the overexagerrated content in the story though, ''People were encouraged to reach into the corpse and eat its innards'' Haha.

  • Moz #87 5 years ago

    What's the view of all of this in Greece?

    Cos if that sort of thing is exceptable over there then the event it's self should not be in question. And the only issue should then be what the hell was OPM doing publishing pictures of the event.

    If the greeks are shocked by this then that's a different matter.

  • ph101 #88 5 years ago

    Ban this sick filth.

  • #89 5 years ago

    Go Sony, you rock!

  • WrongShui #90 5 years ago

    Fucking disgrace, poor goat.

    Now excuse me, i have womens faces to smash into the floor on GoW 2.

  • 3william56 #91 5 years ago

    Personally, I find the fat bloke wearing makeup and a cheap IKEA rug a lot more objectional.

  • Zuiyo #92 5 years ago

    More free advertisement brought to you by the Daily Mail. Nothing new there. You could also say the fact someone overreacted to the point of recalling magazines with the coverage is kind of shocking. But what it also does is draw a line between journalism and advertisement. If anybody needed a confirmation about what side of the fence an official magazine veers to, this is one bloody good one.

    On the other side, are animal rights fundamentalists getting too scary to deal with or what? Aren't people overreacting a little bit? Admittedly, the fact that the whole thing was being used to promote a product might make it a bit objectional, but to the point of creating this fuss? One part of me wants to think there is nothing strange in a dead animal which is going to be eaten anyway. What's wrong with using it to add up to the theatricality of an event? I mean, if it was peeled and wrapped in film ready to be fried just like in Tesco it would have been OK? I feel marketing people have a right to be creative without PETA filling their bumper with stickers...

  • kangarootoo #93 5 years ago

    @WaxBrazillian

    I might not make you watch you speed, but it will for some people. I didn't know they hadn't got permission from the family of the deceasedf and I agree that is pretty shitty.

    It seems we agree on who this campaign was supposed to appeal to.

  • kangarootoo #94 5 years ago

    @Zuiyo

    "But what it also does is draw a line between journalism and advertisement. If anybody needed a confirmation about what side of the fence an official magazine veers to, this is one bloody good one."

    Was there ever any doubt? All official magazines are advertising. They are simply mouthpieces of the console vendor. I don't know if I have ever bought one now I think on it and I certainly wouldn't these days.

    Even independant platform affilitated magazines are to be viewed with suspicion, as they have an inherent motive for presenting their chosen platform in a positive light.

    Multi-platform independant publications (such as EG) are the only ones to really trust.

  • malteaserhead #95 5 years ago

    Daymare
    30-Apr-07 16:55:04
    Nice point then, malteaserhead;)
    Unless you were trying to be insulting!
    /shakes a fist

    _________________________________
    Heh! No no. Just making a point.
    I rarely insult people...
    Big bum ;)

  • floppylobster #96 5 years ago

    Sony attacks goat's weak point for massive damage!