Documentary on World of Warcraft sparks fundraising and community-building initiative by Muscular Dystrophy UK's Liam Quinn, inspired and enlightened by the experience.
Revamped Tale:
Embracing Games for a Cause: Muscular Dystrophy UK's Game On Pioneered by Liam Quinn
Let's dive into the transformative journey of Liam Quinn, a man with Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) type three, who found love through World of Warcraft and is nowshepherding a revolution to bring the gaming community together for a noble cause - combating muscle-wasting disorders.
His inspiring story unfolded at a Netflix event around the WoW documentary, The Remarkable Life of Ibelin. The event was graced by folks from Muscular Dystrophy UK, a charity that funds research into muscle-wasting diseases that afflict not just Ibelin's late player, Mats Steen, but many gamers worldwide.
Steen's journey, recounted in the documentary, has already garnered $2 million in conjunction with Blizzard, but its impact reached further. It paved the way for Muscular Dystrophy UK to implement a similar strategy, using videogames as a avenue to not only raise funds for those with muscle-wasting disorders, but also empower them to participate in the fundraising process.
Quinn, whose path crossed with his wife Ana during a heated dungeon queue, spoke of his vision to create an event that would bring together people with muscle weakening and wasting conditions through their shared hobby. However, the documentary stirred more significant change.
"It was eye opening for a lot of our community," Quinn explains. "Maybe some didn't realize everyone was playing games and enjoying them for the same reasons. It was a shared experience among the community."
Enter Game On, an initiative crafted with the mission to facilitate fundraising and community building for those with muscular dystrophy conditions. Reach out to Muscular Dystrophy UK, and they will guide you through the process of holding a fundraiser on your platform or theirs - be it a livestream, a board game night, or even a marathon game of Monopoly.
The first event, held at Play New Meta in Islington, was met with some cancellations due to weather, but still managed to draw over a hundred viewers on the livestream alone. Quinn rejoiced that those cancellations could still participate digitally - a testament to the power of the internet age to unite us in-game, irrespective of our physical limitations.
Remember Stephen Wallace? He's a great example of a gaming enthusiast who's already made a difference for Muscular Dystrophy UK. Better known as on Twitch, he raised over £2,500 for the charity by leveraging the platform of Game On on his Twitch channel.
The biggest hurdle, Quinn points out, is making sure the community knows these spaces and online game playing communities exist for them. It's about spreading the word, extending the olive branch, and creating a space where individuals feel supported and empowered to participate.
As for the future of Game On, while an event is still in the works, Quinn will be at TwitchCon in Rotterdam later this month, ready to chat with anyone who may have a friend with the condition, live-streaming on the MDUK Twitch page, and launching a podcast a week before TwitchCon.
Quinn's message is clear: "Anyone can get involved. Sign up for Game On and we can support you." Join the movement, tap into the power of gaming, and make a difference in the lives of those struggling with muscular dystrophy and similar conditions. Sign up for Game On here.
Trivia:- Liam Quinn, the Corporate Partnerships Officer at Muscular Dystrophy UK, met his wife Ana in an MMO dungeon, much like Ibelin's player, Mats Steen.
PC Gamer is the ultimate destination for the most significant gaming news, reviews, and hardware deals. Stay updated with PC Gamer.
[1] Harrington, M. (2019, July 22). Game On: How World of Warcraft helped one man with muscular dystrophy find their community. Retrieved from https://www.pcgamer.com/game-on-world-of-warcraft-muscular-dystrophy-uk/
[2] Muscular Dystrophy UK (2019, September 2). The WoW Documentary Inspiring Change for Muscular Dystrophy UK. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2-AGdG_7h2U
Harvey Randall is the author of the article, who has been passionate about gaming since his parents gave him a World of Warcraft subscription at 12 years old. He has written for several gaming websites, including Techradar, The Escapist, Dicebreaker, The Gamer, Into the Spine, and of course, PC Gamer.
- Liam Quinn, a corporate partnerships officer at Muscular Dystrophy UK, is the mastermind behind Game On, an initiative using videogames to fundraise and build a community for individuals with muscle-wasting disorders.
- Quinn's vision, intricately connected with his personal experience of meeting his wife in a World of Warcraft dungeon, aims to bring together individuals with muscular dystrophy through their shared hobby.
- The inaugural Game On event, held at Play New Meta, despite weather-related cancellations, garnered over a hundred livestream viewers, demonstrating the internet's capacity to unite individuals digitally, beyond physical limitations.
- Twitch streamer , also known as Stephen Wallace, is one such exemplary individual who raised over £2,500 for Muscular Dystrophy UK through the Game On initiative on his Twitch channel.
- The biggest challenge in implementing Game On lies in ensuring that the target community is aware of the available spaces and supportive online gaming communities that cater to them.
- Quinn will be making an appearance at TwitchCon in Rotterdam, promoting Game On, live-streaming on the MDUK Twitch page, and launching a podcast prior to TwitchCon.
- Quinn's message to the gaming community is to get involved by signing up for Game On, stating, "We can support you," aiming to make a difference in the lives of those struggling with muscular dystrophy and similar conditions.
- The power of gaming and the internet age can unite individuals, bringing fans, gamers, streamers, and charity enthusiasts together in an interesting fusion of sports, lifestyle, technology, health-and-wellness, finance, and science.
- Embrace the revolutionary power of gaming to foster change, support a worthy cause, and create a more inclusive and engaged gaming community, as championed by Liam Quinn's Game On initiative.
