Described by one observer as “the grimmest stunt ever,” the human butchery and morgue that popped up at London’s Smithfield meat market last weekend (September 28 & 29) was the culmination of a heart-stopping promotional campaign for Resident Evil 6, the latest game installment in the zombie horror franchise, which launches October 3.





It all began a couple of weeks ago when five murder scenes were carefully staged then photographed outside five prominent London media companies, including the offices of the Guardian newspaper, Future Publishing, and Blue Fin Building, home to magazine publisher IPC. Gruesome injuries were re-created with expert help from St. Bartholomew’s Hospital Pathology Museum.

The “crime scene images” were then sent to 75 members of the press based in and near each location accompanied by an autopsy report detailing in a scientifically valid way the injuries shown on each body–each “death” being a way a character might die during Resident Evil 6 game play.

A follow-up mailing then targeted 125 journalists with a selection of pre-packaged fresh meat products. Though these were everyday animal products bought from a local supermarket, each packet had been carefully re-labeled to suggest human origin–“Human Thigh Steaks,” for example–and accompanied by a pot of red or green herbs in direct reference to health tonics used in the game.

Finally, journalists were invited to a launch event at a human butcher’s called Wesker & Son–named after a key character in the game. The pop-up store was filled with fake body parts sourced from U.S. props specialist Dapper Cadaver.

There were also edible products available to buy in the shop, which was open to the public for two days. Though made from animal meat, the products, such as “Peppered Human & Lemon Sausages,” were carefully designed to look like human flesh by food artist Sharon Baker, whose centerpiece was also on display–a full-sized meat model of herself.

“The brief was simple: raise awareness of the game within the non-gaming community beyond hardcore gamers who were already anticipating the game’s release. “But zombies have become a bit of a cliché, so my response was: ‘Let’s do something a little bit different,'” explains the campaign’s creator Emma Thomas, a London-based freelance creative director better known in PR and events circles as Miss Cakehead, who specializes in edgier events.