By Mark Squibb/October 14, 2021
Since 2018, Gamers vs MS has been raising funds for the MS Society of Canada to help fight multiple sclerosis.
Since their inception, the group has raised $175,000. Much of those funds come from the twice-annual, week-long gaming relay marathon, in which gamers across Canada invite folks to tune into their streams, watch them play games, have a chat, and leave a donation.
Project Director John Michael Bennett of Mount Pearl said that the last year has been particularly successful.
“A huge majority of that (money raised) has been this year,” said Bennett. “This year things have really taken off, and we’ve raised about $60,000 through this project alone this year. And with this relay upcoming, we can never make any predictions because there are always so many different things in the air, but if we can raise anywhere from $30,000 to $40,000, during this relay, we would be more than ecstatic. But every dollar counts, so we’re just happy with whatever happens.”
The 168-hour relay begins October 16. Beginning at 8 a.m. that morning, folks can tune in at GamersVsMS.ca and watch at anytime. Gamers play for six-to-twelve-hour shifts before passing the baton, so to speak, to the next streamer.
Content depends on who is streaming at the moment.
“Me, personally, I do stream during the relay, and I tend to be Nintendo-based, so think of your classics like Mario or Zelda,” said Bennett. “Others, where it’s going to be close to Halloween, will do some scary, horror-esque streams, so you might see them play Resident Evil or Silent Hill. Some people even do art streams. So, even though it’s called Gamers Vs MS, some people do art, and some people do art for donation. So, one of our biggest fundraisers, when she receives any donation, she does a quick two- or three-minute sketch for you.”
For those who have never participated in a stream before, Bennett said it’s sort of like interactive TV.
“It’s no different then tuning into a channel on your television,” said Bennett. “There’ll be a screen that is displaying the stream that is currently happening. So, you’ll see the streamer and the game that they’re playing, all on one screen. And off the side is the chat box. But where everything is live and in-the-moment, if you use the chat box, or if you donate, it will pop up on the screen in real time. So, it’s very interactive.”
The streamers will be able to interact with those using the chat feature.
Around 20 or so streamers will participate in the relays. Typically, seven or eight are from Newfoundland, as the event was founded here locally in Mount Pearl, and several of the committee members live in the city.
And while the twice annual relay is the group’s marquee event, folks who want to do a stream of their own can participate in a “One-up” stream and raise money for charity on their own. Information on how to do that is on the group’s website.
Adding in the “One-Up” participants, there could be as many as 50 or 60 streamers participating annually.
Given the online nature of the service, COVID-19 has not interrupted the group’s output all that much, and may actually have enhanced it.
“People were starting to adapt to the online world, and we were already there,” said Bennett.
The relay runes from October 16 to the 23 and can be accessed at www.gamersvsms.ca.
