fundraising
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Zelda Reorchestrated seeking donations for 'Twilight Symphony'
The talented musicians from Zelda Reorchestrated are asking the gaming community for a bit of help in realizing their most ambitious project to date: a two-and-a-half-hour, 40-track compilation of orchestral pieces inspired by the score for Twilight Princess. The group needs a full-sized choir to lend its vocal talents on some of the songs, but unfortunately, hiring a full-sized choir is a super expensive thing to do. You can find out more details about the project, and make a helpful contribution, over on the ZREO Kickstarter page. There's some sweet incentives for donors too, including a personal arrangement of your favorite Nintendo theme song. (We'll take the ending theme to Little Nemo, thanks.)
Video game museum uses Kickstarter to find a home in San Francisco
San Francisco's Museum of Art and Digital Entertainment is an organization "dedicated to the preservation of video games, and the presentation of games as art," but it has a problem: it's currently homeless. The MADE has a growing collection (some of which can be seen above) and a slew of ideas for programming (like classes, talks, and gaming parties), but needs "a safe space near public transit" to call its own. And so it's taking to Kickstarter, where you can donate to help the organization towards its goal of raising $20,000. A measly $5 gets you a ticket to the museum if and when it opens; $1000 or more will put your name on the wall. In between, you can get access to a pre-opening party, or nab some signed games, T-shirts, and stickers. It sounds like a good cause if you're in San Francisco and happen to be the kind of person who'd like to visit a museum designed for video games.
Zeboyd seeking funds for PC port of Cthulhu Saves the World
Feeling a little altruistic? Here's a great cause that's worth supporting: The great and terrible destruction of existence at the hands of Cthulhu, who reigns high on his obsidian throne in the dark, nightmarish dwellings of R'lyeh. Oh, wait -- the money you're donating is actually going to Zeboyd Games, who needs funds to help bring its game, Cthulhu Saves the World, from the Xbox Live Indie Games platform to the PC. Yeah, that makes way more sense. The fundraising is taking place on Kickstarter, which is offering quite a few savory prizes for any and all big spenders. For instance, folks who donate $750 or more can end up as townsfolk in the charming indie RPG. That's a small price to pay for virtual immortality, isn't it?
Child's Play breaks annual record with over $2 million raised
Child's Play has become the ubiquitous ur-charity for the gaming community. Founded by Mike Krahulik and Jerry Holkins of Penny Arcade fame, it's grown into a multinational event for gamers the world over to help out needy children. It's also made a tradition out of breaking records for overall donations every year, and this year is no exception, with the total amount raised coming out to over $2 million for the year and nearly $9 million over its lifetime. The record-breaking effort has always been helped by enterprising fundraisers from the community, and the MMO community is no exception; notable fundraising efforts this year include the Lord of the Rings Online-inspired fundraiser from A Casual Stroll to Mordor and Sony Online Entertainment's donations for the purchase of in-game pets, together with other non-MMO events such as the infamous Desert Bus for Hope marathon and the Humble Indie Bundle. The entire gaming community, online or off, can take pride in another record-breaking year for Child's Play.
Behemoth collects over 30k for Haiti relief, extends promotion again
Since January 20, the team at Behemoth have been raising money through Xbox Live DLC sales of Castle Crashers and Alien Hominid to support relief efforts in Haiti. Over four days, Behemoth has collected $15,585.65 through DLC purchases; however, since the promise was to donate 200% of all DLC sales, The Behemoth has matched the total leaving the donation jar filled with $31,171.29! That's great, but for The Behemoth it isn't great enough. Today the team announced they will continue to extend the promotion until the total donation jar hits $50,000. What a bunch of sweethearts. Check out a list of the DLC you can buy to help offer support for the people in Haiti. They really need your help.
Second Lifers raise funds for Australian fire victims
One of the defining characteristics that is often remarked on about Second Life users is their generosity. Not that they're necessarily a soft-touch, but they're kind in often unexpected ways and tend to be strong supporters and organizers of charity efforts. Fires are still burning out of control in the state of Victoria, in South-Eastern Australia. Thousands have lost their homes. Some areas are inaccessible for searchers, but a little under 200 people are known to be dead so far, and thousands have lost everything, and are in need of food, clothing, shelter, and medical care. A number of Second Life users and content-creators are pitching in to raise funds for the relief effort.
Virtual bicycles, real cause
Second Life is a great place for nonprofits and altruistic causes to connect with like-minded people. Real conversations can be had there, and real friendships have formed through working toward a common goal. In that spirit, Virtual Africa is the SL build currently under development by Uthango Social Investments, a charity based in Capetown, South Africa. They're currently running a fundraising drive through SL for a new Opportunity Center for unemployed job seekers. "The Opportunity Centre is a revamped cow shed that we need to equip with computers, office resources and mentors to assist job seekers, small entrepreneurs and community members in making their own way out of poverty by actively pursuing their dreams," said Dorette Steenkamp, co-executive director of Uthango. "The [e]bizikile fundraising event is meant to bring attention to how bicycles fit into the economy in African cities and rural towns." Basically, residents can buy a bicycle designed by Shukran Fahid of !BooPeRFunK! for L$250, and choose to contribute to a fund for buying a real Capetown resident a bicycle. SL charity organization Charitable Hearts is helping to organize this effort to get the SL community involved in making a real world difference in someone's life. For more information on this fundraiser, contact Enakai Ultsch or Alanagh Recreant in-world.[Thanks, Cybergrrl!]
