One Special Day - Friday, October 4
Dozens of game companies give today's profits to gaming accessibility charity
Today, some of the biggest names from the games industry are uniting behind SpecialEffect, the gamers' charity, for their annual One Special Day flagship fundraising campaign.
Companies from all over the world, large and small, from the mobile, PC and console arenas - as well as retail and hardware - will donate revenue from in game purchases and sales, hold auctions and fundraising events and stage their own online sales of top titles.
Mobile developer Seriously have worked with SpecialEffect to promote One Special Day across the games industry and have been a major factor in its success. This year, the creators of the global hit Best Fiends mobile game have also utilised their partnership with English Premier League football club Norwich City to publicise the campaign. Seriously and their sponsorship partners Norwich City have arranged for match day advertising for the tie with Aston Villa on 5 October to be given to SpecialEffect, with fundraising and auctioning off signed shirts to boot!
Since its inception in 2016, One Special Day has raised almost one million pounds for SpecialEffect. It's much needed income as the UK-based charity doesn't charge for any of its services and relies entirely on voluntary income, much of which comes from the games industry and gaming communities.
One Special Day generates enormous positive interaction across social media and in the past has even had reality TV superstar Kim Kardashian tweeting her best wishes to over 57 million followers, as well as being mentioned in the UK Parliament! The huge surge of positivity generated by SpecialEffect and the games industry on One Special Day does an enormous amount to raise awareness of the charity's work and the options available to people with disabilities who'd like to be able to play digital games.
Dr Mick Donegan, Founder and CEO of SpecialEffect, is delighted by the support for One Special Day from the games industry: 'One Special Day is such an important fundraising event for SpecialEffect, particularly with the ever-increasing demand for our services. The support the event receives from the games industry is absolutely vital in making sure we can continue to reach every disabled person that wants our help to be able to join in and play. SpecialEffect is here and supporting disabled gamers because of the backing we receive from the games industry and their gaming communities. Without it, we simply couldn't reach the number of disabled gamers we're currently able to.'
For anyone that enjoys gaming of any description, One Special Day will be clearly visible today across mobile apps and social media. Companies participating will relay the One Special Day message to its players - "Buy, Play, Donate" - and proudly declare themselves part of the games industry's largest charitable endeavour of the calendar year.
To find out more about One Special Day, go to www.onespecialday.org.uk or email SpecialEffect Partnerships Fundraiser nick@specialeffect.org.uk