Child’s Play also proved that gamers don’t need Bono or George Clooney to tell them what to do. Loads of gamer-led charities have sprung up, many of them assisting children’s hospitals or victims of natural disasters. Speed Gamers first came together to raise money for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, a cancer-research facility in Memphis, although their recent donors have included hospitals in the UK.
Gaming charity events can also be a laugh. Child’s Play stages an annual charity dinner auction, hosted by Gabe and Tycho, where winning bidders can become guest voice actors in games or cartoon characters in Penny Arcade. The Speed Gamers, meanwhile, spend days in their Texan stronghold, trying to complete games as fast as possible.
“Once it gets going, it’s a lot of fun,” says LaRiviere. “I wouldn’t say it’s a party, but we’re all friends and there are usually five or six people involved. We crack jokes and the webcam captures it all.” Last summer, Speed Gamers undertook a week-long marathon in which they attempted to complete every Final Fantasy game, raising over $50,000 (£32,030) for autistic children. “We needed a break after that one,” says LaRiviere. “You’re pretty worked over after three days. After a week, I didn’t want to play a game ever again.”
But how do you know the money is going to the right place? LaRiviere says no money goes through Speed Gamers. Instead donors give directly to the charity. Some campaigns have less credibility. MMO Atlantica Online recently announced it would donate 5% of a “grab bag” to Child’s Play. The charity asked not to be involved. Considering the small percentage offered, the publisher was arguably piggy-backing on Child’s Play’s success.
Above: Gaia Online helped out poor Haitians
This was a rare event, though. For years, gaming was thought of as a mildly selfish exercise. Now gamers can give as good as the rest of ‘em. “We’re inspired by the fund-raising efforts and ability of the music and film industries to mobilise celebrities and consumers,” says Craig Sherman, CEO of Gaia Online. “That said, we are thrilled by our users’ response to the disaster in Haiti and feel it's a good indication that the industry can continue to make a difference.”
Or, as LaRiviere puts it: “It’s just nice to go against the stigma and show that gamers aren’t just lazy bums. We can do good too.”
Some of gaming%26rsquo;s charitable contributions
The celebrity endorsement
In the popularity stakes,The Tuttles Madcap Misadventures: Starlight Charity Challengeis hardly up there with Halo. In fact, if a game was any more obscure it would be hiding in a cave in Borneo. Based around a family road trip, this 2008 adventure platformer features Hollywood at its B-list best: TV host Bob Saget as the dad, Jamie Lee Curtis the mum, and High School Musical’s Ashley Tisdale as the teenage daughter. Former Captain Kirk William Shatner voices the mini-van. Proceeds went to seriously ill children. A few children, at least.
The charity calendar
TheMMO Calendaris unlikely to become the garage owner’s calendar of choice, unless it starts featuring topless Paladins. But for MMO fans, this annual collection is champagne for the eyes, with original artwork from games like EverQuest II, Lord of the Rings Online, World of Warcraft and Age of Conan. Money raised goes toward a children’s hospital in the US, and people who buy calendars are entered into a drawing for MMO prize goodies.
The humanitarian group
For a long time, humanitarian organisation Red Cross was hardly the biggest fans of videogames. After all, games often use the group’s logo to depict health packs, hospitals, ambulances, and medics. Not exactly the best PR, especially in games that let you shoot doctors in the face. Regardless, Red Cross have discovered the alluring ways of interactive entertainment, creating their own web games. These includeTraces of Hope, which highlights the plight of Ugandan children,Red Cross The Game, andParcel Panic.
The endurance test
Playing Penn & Teller’s intentionally terrible bus driving sim requires balls of steel, but every year Loading Ready Run come out swinging. While some participants drive the bus to nowhere, others undergo humiliation for the sake of charity. As part of 2008’s Desert Bus for Hope 2 – Bus Harder, one LRR member was forced to watch Twilight in a theater five times in a row. Another had his legs waxed, while another wore a dress for an hour while his mum told stories about his childhood. The horror, the horror.
Mar 19, 2010
