Manchester Cathedral is calling for all video games manufacturers to sign up to a new set of “sacred digital guidelines” to prevent future “virtual desecration” of religious buildings.

The guidelines, which will be debated at the Church of England’s General Synod in York this weekend, are released today as Sony issue an unreserved apology to the clergy and congregation of Manchester Cathedral for using the building’s interior as the setting for a violent computer game.

The Japanese computer giant also pledged never to use Manchester Cathedral in another computer game.

But cathedral clergy say the apology, due to be published in the Manchester Evening News today is not enough.

The cathedral’s lawyers are still “in conversation” with lawyer’s at Sony over the Dean of Manchester’s demand that the game, a PS3 “shooter” called Resistance: Fall of Man, be withdrawn.

And cathedral clergy are also demanding a response from Sony to their request for a donation to their work with young people and the victims of gun crime.

Sony has admitted that it did not receive permission from Manchester Cathedral to use its nave for a climactic gun battle in the game. A central feature of the cathedral’s mission in recent years has been to support the struggle against gun crime in Manchester. A service is held each year in the building for relatives and friends of the victims of gun crime.

Dean of Manchester, the Very Rev Rogers Govender, said: “We asked Sony to apologise unreservedly to the Cathedral and wider community for the offence caused. This they have done.

“We asked them to withdraw the game. They have refused to do this.

“We asked Sony to make a donation to community groups nominated by the Cathedral. They have not responded.”

He said the Cathedral Chapter had drawn up what are believed to be the first ever Sacred Digital Guidelines to prevent a repeat episode.

Dean Govender said: “We have been dismayed at those in the computer industry who have defended the use of Manchester Cathedral in this a violent game. We fear that the next buildings to be cloned for virtual desecration could be a mosque, synagogue, temple or other churches.

“As Christians we follow Christ the prince of peace. We as a Cathedral Chapter deplore all forms of violence and would urge game makers to consider avoiding the production of violent games if at all possible.”

He called on all computer games manufacturers, not just Sony, to sign up to the new guidelines, published in the form of a code of conduct for the use of religious building interiors in the computer and digital domain.

The Dean said: “There is a mood in the nation and in the global community regarding these sort of games. In the past few weeks we have seen games being withdrawn for including what appear to be images of James Bulger’s kidnapping. We have seen the British Board of Film Classification ban Manhunt 2 because it would in their view involve a range of unjustifiable harm risks to both adults and minors.”

In a letter to the editor of the Manchester Evening News, the President of Sony Computer Entertainment Europe, David Reeves, says: “It is clear to us that the connection between the congregation and the Cathedral is a deeply personal and spiritual one. As a result, it is also clear that we have offended some of the congregation by using the cathedral in our science fiction game.

“It was never our intention to offend anyone in the making of this game, and we would like to apologise unreservedly to them for causing that offence, and to all parts of the community who we might also have offended.

“Furthermore, we will ensure that Manchester Cathedral is never used as a setting in any future Sony Computer Entertainment video game.”

Digital Guidelines code of conduct

1. Respect our sacred spaces as places of prayer, worship, peace, learning and heritage.

2. Do not assume that sacred space interiors are copyright free.

3. Get permission from the faith leaders who are responsible for the building interiors you want to clone.

4. Support the work of those engaged in resisting the culture of gun crime and those involved in promoting the work of conflict resolution.