War Child launches GameOn fundraising hub

War Child, the charity organisation that helps children affected by conflict, wants to step its involvement with the games industry. As a first step, it has launched GameOn, an online hub to encourage publishers and developers to share and discuss fundraising ideas.

In the ten years since its first gaming partnership War Child has raised more than £2 million through working with developers, publishers and gamers. A recent example of its work with the industry is Armistice, an initiative where game studios created content for existing games that promoted non-violent gameplay.

The work of Positech, iNK Stories and Wargaming, among others, helped to raise more than £100,000 for the charity. Wayne Emanuel, game development manager at War Child, pointed to the "incredible" result of initiatives like Armistice as a the driving factor behind the more proactive appeal that GameOn represents.

"GameOn is an exciting next step for War Child," Emanuel said in a statement. "Our journey so far has seen collaborations with major players in the industry, and with the new gaming hub we hope to encourage more developers, studios, publisher and gamers to join us on our mission striving for a world where no child's life is torn apart by war."

Tim Schafer, Randy Pitchford, Rhianna Pratchett, Debbie Bestwick and Charles Cecil are among many industry figures to have offered their support for GameOn already. The website indicates a broad variety of ways that game companies can help to raise money, including developing full games and DLC, themed campaigns like Armistice, and fundraising through game events and challenges using the Just Giving platform.

War Child actively helps children in countries affected by violent conflict, including Afghanistan, Iraq, Jordan, Uganda, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Central African Republic, and Yemen. You can learn more about GameOn at the official website.