If you have an entire Saturday free and want to do something fun — and slightly crazy — for charity, read on.
This year’s Extra Life charity gaming marathon is coming up on Nov. 2. It’s an event in which gamers all over the world spend an entire day playing video games to raise money for their local Children’s Miracle Network hospitals. This is its sixth year, and it’s raised over 4 million dollars since it began in 2008.
Here’s how it works: Participants set up a fundraising page and ask friends and family to sponsor them. At 8 a.m. local time Nov. 2 — or whenever works for you — you start playing whichever games you want. And then at 8 a.m. on Nov. 3, you stop playing and go into a coma (coma optional). Because of Daylight Saving Time is ending, that means the marathon is 25 hours this year instead of the usual 24, but you can do it, right? It’s for kids.
Like last year, GamesBeat has a team set up, and anyone interested is welcome to join. Or you can just pick your favorite team member and send them a buck or two. One hundred percent of the money raised goes to participants’ hospitals, and many people stream their marathons on services such as Twitch or Ustream.
If you’re interested in taking part, you can sign up here. And let’s face it — a lot of you were going to spend most of that Saturday playing games, anyway. It might as well be for a good cause.
You can find more information at the event’s official site.