For the last month or so I have been fund raising for GameBlast15 which is is a video gaming charity event that raises money for the marvelous work done by Special Effect.
As I mentioned in my previous post on Special Effect, they are an amazing charity who help change the lives of gamers with disabilities by modifying games consoles in a way to create a level playing for all gamers to stand side by side and game to their hearts content. This allows inclusion for all the gamers who are unable to game due to their disabilities whatever they may be.
I thought I'd give you an insight into the small part that I played in this epic weekend of video gaming and fund raising.
Set A Target.....
Initially I had set myself a target of £100 which I quickly achieved due to my generous friends and family. I then upped the ante by putting my new target to £250 which is enough to fund a video games roadshow for a special school or hospital. I felt that this kind of money would immediately create an impact in a gamers life who may not have had the opportunity to benefit from Special Effects great work.
I then took to Social Media in the form of Twitter and Facebook to make sure everyone knew what I was doing on the weekend of the 20th to the 22nd of February.
My total began to grow until it reached the £250 mark the day before I was due to take part in the video games marathon! I was happy to say the least that I could hold my head up high and say that I'd managed to raise a respectable amount for such a great cause.
What Did I Do?
I had planned to do a 12 hour stint during the overall 72hour marathon of gaming.
Having a young family had meant a 24 hour stint was out of the question as there are always nappies to change and children to feed!!
I was happy to have the opportunity to game solidly for 12 hours which is a luxury I rarely get nowadays.
12 hours on Saturday the 21st was my chosen slot, from 11am to 11pm.
This was timed nicely to get my eldest daughter fed and clothed and then help out my wife with the morning chores involved with a 3 week old!
What To Play? (Repping Retrogaming!)
Now I had my slot it was time to get down to business and fire up SONIC The Hedgehog.
In my mind I was going to be able to play Sonic 1 & 2 in my 12 hour session. To me Sonic was a happy go lucky game that didn't throw the biggest of challenges but would challenge me enough in a 12 hour gaming marathon.
"This Is Tougher Than What I Remember!"
When Saturday came I fired up my modded XBOX and got the SEGA Megadrive emulator up and running after recording a nice intro on the video camera for this article.
Once I was through Green Hill Zone Act 1 I had managed to get my fingers working to the beat of Sonic as I manipulated my blue mate around the level like a seasoned pro that I once was. Then it got hard!
Green Hill Zone was a breeze but then for some reason I couldn't get my fingers in gear to nab myself a nice chaos emerald and a continue in the bonus zone…..
I thought I would then still be able to proceed through the rest of the game on about 5 lives and no continues …… I WAS WRONG!!
When did I become an inept gamer? So instead of strolling through Sonic I kept getting as far as the darn Labrynth Zone and then dying trying to chase Robotnik out of the flooded tunnel thingy! Then as my last life eeeeeked away it was back to the very start of the game for me!
Eventually after much pad throwing, bashing, nappy changes and swearing I was able to complete Sonic 1! Hoorah! Unfortunately I had completed it with only 15 minutes to spare of my allotted 12 hour stint so Sonic 2 was out of the question!!! (maybe next year eh!)
If You Do One Thing As Gamer in 2016……
Do This! Yes, I would highly recommend taking part in GAMEBLAST 16
Throughout the whole event I was tuned into the GAMEBLAST 15 Twitch stream which had various interviews and lets plays running throughout the event and it acted as my companion for my 12 hours of Sonic.
The Twitch stream was highly enjoyable and gave an insight into what others were doing alongside also revealing some cool indie games that I hadn't seen before (I AM BREAD was one of my favourite playthroughs)
I eventually managed to raise £270 with a further £250 to potentially come in at a later date from a community cashback award.
Next Years event will see Games Freezer really planning a mega event to raise yet more cash for this great cause!
I'm thinking a group game of Super Mario Kart BATTLE MODE or maybe a mega game of 4 Player Bomberman!
The plans will be made for the next year and GAMEBLAST 16 will be the event to beat ALL charity events….
Don't Forget That YOU Can Still Give To this Amazing Cause By Visiting:
No comments:
Post a Comment
Like what you see in the Games Freezer?
Why not tell us what you think with a few well-chosen comments? :)
Note: only a member of this blog may post a comment.