Legacy issues formal apology to Bulger family

Legacy Interactive has apologised to the family of James Bulger for featuring an image of the murdered toddler in PC title Law and Order: Double or Nothing.

In a statement the company said, "Legacy Interactive sends our most heartfelt apology to the family of James Bulger for the inadvertent use of a background photo in our Law and Order game.

"The image was included in the game years ago and without any knowledge of the crime, which occurred in the UK and was minimally publicised in the United States."

According to Legacy it's the first time such a situation has occurred, and the company is " proud of its reputation of providing years of family and educational gaming".

The image of Bulger, a still of CCTV footage recorded in The Strand shopping centre, Merseyside, is visible on a bulletin board in the game.

Denise Fergus, James' mother, wrote to Legacy demanding it be removed.

The company has now confirmed that a patch has been created to eliminate the photo from the game, and it's now available for download from LegacyInteractive.com. Legacy also said that the photo will be removed from any future printings of the game.