Games developers have been criticised for having a negative attitude to religion, though the subject is taken seriously, writes Joe Griffin. Released late last month, "Halo: Reach" has been a phenomenal success, making more than $200 million (€143 million) in its first 24 hours.

In that first day, it eclipsed the opening three-day takings of the biggest films of the year so far. The millions of fans of the Halo series will be familiar with its theme and content: it doesn’t paint organised religion in a flattering light. In the series, the villainous Covenant, an alien alliance, wages a pointless, bloody intergalactic war motivated by nothing more than religious belief. They even use suicide bombers.

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