Gamers take fundraising to the next level over 24 hours
MORE than 35 of Guernsey’s most avid gamers put on their headsets, picked up their controls and locked in for 24 hours over the weekend as part of Guernsey Gaming For Good’s gaming marathon for local charity Men’s Shed.
Taking place at Digital Greenhouse and sponsored by Sure, the event saw most gamers pick and choose their own games to play on individual screens for the duration of the marathon, while some took turns to play games streamed on a projector screen located at the far end of the room.
The event managed to raise more than £7,000 for Men’s Shed, beating last year’s total of £6,000.
Guernsey Gaming For Good chairman Jim Hookway, speaking near the end of the marathon, said that most gamers had found the hours of 7am and 8am the toughest to stay awake for, but they had implemented a number of strategies to try and combat the fatigue.
‘Everyone’s been eating loads of fruit, and with the way we’ve set up the space this year everyone has been quite comfortable so that’s helped.’
Event stage manager Ben Wratten said that this was Guernsey Gaming For Good’s 17th fundraising initiative, with the group having now raised more than £40,000 for a range of charities over the years.
Setting up the technology within Digital Greenhouse’s offices took place earlier in the week, and Mr Wratten said it had gone smoothly.
‘One good thing about being here is that the wi-fi is really strong, which obviously is crucial for an event like this to be successful.’
He said a range of consoles had been used as part of the event, including PCs, Xboxes, Nintendo Switches and even a PlayStation 2.
As for his own tactics when it came to staying awake into the early hours of the morning, Mr Wratten said that avoiding energy drinks was key.
‘They give you an initial boost, but once that wears off you crash very quickly.
‘It’s just about staying hydrated and taking food and loo breaks when you need to.’
Two people taking part in the marathon were couple Daniel and Dominique Ogier-Keltie.
They had completed the event once before, and agreed that they had found it slightly easier this time.
‘At 2am we went outside for some fresh air, and we took a few breaks to move around,’ Mrs Ogier-Keltie said.
‘I think that definitely gave us some energy, as well as two big flasks of coffee.’
Mr Ogier-Keltie added that playing games they knew well made things easier.
These included titles such as Unravelled and Way Out.
‘One thing we learnt from the previous time was not to play a brand-new game. Doing something we knew well meant we didn’t have to think too much about it,’ he said.
