Sick Kids Save Point

It's so EPIC it's Stupid!

2011-10-14T19:49:00.000+01:00

DowntoforitX are a Scottish gaming podcast. They are also part of the awesome Retroids Podcast Network. Most importantly though, they are doing Sick Kids Save Point THIS WEEKEND. As part of Retroids they are committed to taking part in Extra Life, SKSP's American Granddaddy, which takes place this weekend, so they moved their Sick Kids Save Point marathon to coincide.

Extra Life is a gaming marathon run by Sarcastic Gamer, which was started to raise funds for the Texas Children's Hospital but now benefits the Children's Miracle Network, a charity which benefits all children's hospitals. Prime and Ray-G are playing for the Sick Kids in Edinburgh, of course, and if you donate to their SKSP page the money will go straight to the hospital, and as it is Just Giving is eligible for Gift Aid. If you want to show some solidarity to these guys, or if you missed out on last weekend but still want to support Sick kids Save Point, go sponsor DowntoforitX now!

Here's their live stream - expect some JRPGs... (popout)

Team Icthus End Their Sick Kids Save Point Marathon In Some Style!

2011-10-11T18:29:00.002+01:00

Well done guys!

The Prize Draw

2011-10-10T20:30:00.000+01:00

Apologies for the bad quality. Email us at info@sickkidssavepoint.org to claim your prize, tell us t-shirt size, or tell us to put it to charity auction. All proceeds, of course will go to the charity.

Our latest TOTAL:

2011-10-10T17:25:00.000+01:00

£17045.76 + gift aid

On behalf of the Sick Kids Friends Foundation and the SKSP team well done everyone! Up for it again next year?

Xander perfects closed - eye game playing...

2011-10-10T17:09:00.003+01:00

Watch live streaming video from xander4sksp at livestream.com

Pics from SKSP's Twitter Feed

2011-10-10T15:36:00.008+01:00

Fed's Tee

Neil's gameplan..

Twitch madness!

Louise started to look "less like a pirate, and
more like a vulnerable old lady..."

SKSP HQ, 8 hours plus of dungeon crawling...

Skyscanner HQ

Black Ops with Fraser

Grayski's final screen. Fitting.

2011-10-08T06:58:00.003+01:00

Keep up to date with tweeps progress here, head over to Facebook for others.

On Your Marks...

2011-10-06T21:17:00.003+01:00

As we all try to get some well needed sleep before this dry-eyed thumb crampy weekend, I'm delighted to say that we have SMASHED our target already. Currently we have raised over 12,000 pounds for the Sick Kids Friends Foundation. This means that collectively we can do our marathons knowing that we genuinely have made a difference, as well as redressing the bad image that gaming has.

First to kick off in the morning is actor and writer Alex Sievewright who has set himself an 8am start. Good luck Alex! You can follow his progress on twitter, where he is known as @wibbleflopp. Please show him support for being our pacemaker by sponsoring him a couple of quid. Here is his Just Giving page.

Also to look out for this weekend are the Ultimate Minecraft team, who (as the name suggests) are playing nothing but minecraft for their whole marathon! They'll be streaming their efforts here. Also if you're at a loose end in Edinburgh this weekend pop in to Twitch Gaming, the local Interactive Video Gaming Centre in Nicolson street, who'll be taking part from 11am on Saturday.

Good Luck to all our participants, and keep up the good work. If you're not taking part, sponsor us by texting SKSP 77 + £(amount) to 70070

Skyscanner: Come Fly With Us

2011-10-05T10:53:00.001+01:00

We're delighted to see Flight search site Skyscanner taking part in Sick Kids Save Point this year. A group of employees will be undertaking our gaming marathon this weekend, according to their site.

"We expect that some of our staff will be a bit frazzled come Monday morning – but hey – it’s all for a good cause!" they tell us. Good luck team - fly true! They've shot up our leaderboard to third, raising almost 600 pounds for the Sick Kids Friends Foundation in a week!

TEXT your support

2011-10-03T16:01:00.000+01:00

Thanks to Just Giving and Vodaphone you can support all the gamers who will be undertaking a 24 hour marathon this weekend by texting SKSP77 plus a donation amount (e.g £10) to 70070. Even just a couple of quid goes a long way to helping making the lives of Sick Children easier.

Our Hero Donates A Prize

2011-10-03T09:42:00.002+01:00

We're delighted to add an addition to our prize list. Jack Henderson, the Sick Kids Fundraising phenomenon of this last year, has donated a signed copy of his book 'Jack Draws Anything' - a collection of his brilliant and often hilarious drawings.

Jack Henderson (6), of Prestonpans, East Lothian came up with the idea to "draw anything" in return for donations to the hospital that treats his wee brother, after a family friend bought one of his drawings for 20p. After two weeks, Jack had over 500 picture requests and then came TV appearances and international recognition! Now he has raised over £25,000 for the Sick Kids Friends Foundation. The requested pictures range from a "dinosaur diving into a pool of jelly" (#1) to "my (extremely bald) friend Brian dancing like a crazy man" (#80). Sick Kids Save Point wanted to put a request in but by the time we donated Jack was overwhelmed by the requests and had a backlog of several months. No biggy - we were happy to support him anyway as he's been a real inspiration to us. Thanks Jack - you're our hero!

Go check out his latest drawings at his blog. To be in with a chance of winning, all you need to do is raise £100 or more in sponsorship.

A Week To Go

2011-09-30T08:31:00.000+01:00

With a week to go until our gaming marathon we've smashed last year's total, just like the Hulk. We're sitting at £7929 raised plus gift aid, which is amazing. This is in part thanks to Rockstar North who once again displayed their awesomeness by donating prizes and a substantial sum. Neil Gow is still top of our leaderboard. The Queensferry dad has raised £988 on his own, which is just incredible. Some of us have only just started collecting sponsorhip, so we expect the total to rise over the course of next weekend's madness. And its not too late to sign up either, just follow the link to the right....

With This Controller I Thee Wed

2011-09-26T10:16:00.007+01:00

With only two weeks to go before our videogames marathon, participant Louise Stephens Alexander has come up with a novel way of getting extra sponsorship: She has promised to undertake the full 24 hours in fancy dress!

I can't move my thumbs!
pic copyright Roddy Mackay Photography

"As an incentive, if I reach my targets prior to the event, I will do the event dressed in a silly and uncomfortable manner." she tells us on her Just Giving page, "£100 - dressed as a pirate, £200 -dressed as a hula girl, £250+ - dressed as a futuristic space robot. If I make £500, which seems unlikely, I will do the entire thing in my wedding dress (complete with veil). Rest assured that it is extremely uncomfortable."
Dramaturge Louise has already received enough sponsorship to guarantee 24 hours dressed like a pirate, but since Louise only got married earlier this year, SKSP thinks it would be a perfect opportunity to wear an outfit that she only got a chance to wear once, and we encourage people to help her reach that £500 target!

What's more, Louise will be playing largely on a PS2, so won't have a network of online buddies to keep her chin up. She plans to play some Taito legends (superqix, space invaders), Colin Mcrae rally, Guitar Hero, Singstar, GTA, tony hawk; Portal and Lego Star Wars. SKSP believes her friends are rallying round, including lending her an Xbox and supplying her with "pizzas and moral support on the night. DELICIOUS MORAL SUPPORT "

Sponsor her here. Follow her twitter to hear updates on her marathon.

Superstar Neil!

2011-09-23T13:19:00.001+01:00

Neil Gow, who has just edged into pole position on our leaderboard, has appeared in his local newspaper, The Queensferry Gazette. There is a lovely interview with Neil, including a picture with his kids, in which they are playing on a laptop with Dualshock 3 controllers! Shareware drivers is it, Neil?

Neil's s 22-month old son Conor, was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes over the summer, so he's had unfortunate first hand experience of the hospital we're raising money for. For your son, for all of us, you're a hero!

Sponsor him here

Checklist time

2011-09-17T08:05:00.002+01:00

So, with Sick Kids Save Point fast approaching, how ready are you for a video games marathon in October? Here's a wee checklist to help you work it out:

1. Have you set up your Just Giving page? Its very quick, just follow the link below to the right. Remember to personalise it, people respond better to personal stories.

2. Are you following us on twitter and facebook? You must keep everyone informed during your marathon by posting on our facebook page, tweeting using the #sksp hashtag, or if you're live streaming or vlogging let us know the url and we'll post them all on this site. We need to know you're still up, and what you're playing.

3. Have you worked out where and when you're playing? If you're playing at home, does whoever you live with know the TV will be out of action for 24 hours? If you're playing with others have you worked out whose house? If you're going to Twitch Gaming, have you let them know? Also work out what time you want to start - An early start means you'll be going to bed in the morning and may mess up your internal clock, but an evening start means you're looking at 36 hours or so awake!

4. Have you asked your closest friends and family to sponsor you? Last year most of our sponsorship came from non-gamers. Part of the point of Sick Kids Save Point is to improve the image of our hobby, and now's your chance to show that some good can be done by playing games. Tell them about the charity, and why you're doing it. Getting sponsored isn't as hard as you think, but you do need to ASK PEOPLE to sponsor you, otherwise it'll all be for nothing.

Good Luck! We can't wait to follow the carnage online...

Equipment provided by the Sick Kids Friends Foundation helps pioneering surgery.

2011-09-15T07:57:00.007+01:00

After Sick Kids Save Point last year, the Sick Kids Friends Foundation purchased OR1 keyhole surgery equipment for the Hospital, and now a toddler from West Lothian is among the first in Scotland to benefit from new state-of-the-art equipment at the Royal Hospital for Sick Children.

18-month-old Rowan Crombie, who lives with her parents in Philpstoun, West Lothian, underwent major keyhole surgery at the hospital after developing a rare condition caused by a cyst close to her liver.

Thanks to the OR1 surgery system, and in a small way the gamers who raised 7k towards it last year, Edinburgh is now recognised world-wide as a leader in paediatric keyhole surgery. We helped to pay for this equipment, and Rowan's recovery is a testament to what we're doing here.

Mr Crombie said: "The whole experience has been incredibly tough but thankfully Rowan is recovering well.

Read more at the Sick Kids website.

SKSP Health Warning

2011-08-17T10:22:00.000+01:00

Trophies YO!

2011-08-15T18:06:00.001+01:00

If you want to know how well we're doing, or more specifics about where the money raised goes, check out our Trophy List. You'll see that we only got 57% of our trophies in 2010, not very impressive by hardcore gamers standards...
Can we do better in 2011? It's all down to you

Fed's appeal

2011-08-07T10:02:00.000+01:00

New Archive Footage discovered!

2011-07-31T08:51:00.002+01:00

At Sick Kids Save Point we're always on the lookout for some retro goodness. Imagine our excitement when we uncovered this archive footage of rare 70s TV show Future Folk, which talks about videogames and the dangers of playing them. Strangely relevant for our marathons in October...

The Social Network

2011-07-22T10:36:00.006+01:00

keep in touch!

The idea of doing a marathon on your own sofa is a bit weird, we know. Last years Sick Kids Save Point found many participants struggling to stay awake and motivated during their marathons, especially if they were attempting the 24 hours of gaming on their own. This is why the social networks are really important in Sick Kids Save Point - they keep you connected with all the other participants. Let people know what your playing, how your doing and it lets us all know that you haven't fallen asleep!
Make sure before you start then that you are following us on Twitter or through our facebook page, and if you are thinking of streaming your marathon live, let us know so we can post the links up here.

Below you can see what the community are talking about on twitter, using the #sksp hashtag...

Win a copy of VVVVVV

2011-07-15T19:58:00.000+01:00

Xander, one of our sterling fundraisers, is giving away a code for a free copy of VVVVVV from Steam to whoever donates the most between now and midnight Sunday. So go donate on his Just Giving page, and good luck. He's also accepting signups to challenge him online during his SKSP marathon in October here...

Neil's challenge

2011-07-12T10:10:00.002+01:00

One of our participants Neil Gow, whose son had spent 5 days at the Sick Kids recently, has set himself some extra challenges for his marathon, according to his blog.. Apparently he's unearthed a list of the worst games ever, and he's looking for people to donate to put him through ordeals such as 'Garden Simulator'..
'a list of truly awful abominations of game design that will test my gaming ability and sanity over the course of the 24 hours.' Neil tells us. Go check out his blog, and donate to put him through hell via his Just Giving page...

A Thousand Thanks!

2011-07-07T12:18:00.001+01:00

We have just passed the thousand pound mark for Sick Kids Save Point 2011, and we're still several months away from our bloodshot-eyed, thumb-aching feat of sheer stamina!

At the time of writing, our total stands at £1003.93 including gift aid. A quick glance of our Leaderboard tells us that a lot of thanks has to go to recent signups Iain and Xander, who have raised £300 between them already! The banter about the leaderboard has already set twitter alight.. Who will win the league and claim the exclusive prize? You can read about Iain's attempt on his website..

For the latest total, just check our figure in the top right -->

SKA Save Point - Win a signed E.P.

2011-07-04T14:19:00.004+01:00

I'm delighted to announce brilliant SKA band More From Jim are to take part in Sick Kids Save Point this year.

More From Jim are a 7 piece band consisting of bass, guitar, drums, trombone, saxophone and two trumpets. All members originate from in and around the town of Annan in Dumfries and Gallowayand have been together for around 4 years - playing both their own music, and many great classics including Sally Brown, Gangsters, Ghostbusters, Brown Eyed Girl, Come on Eilleen and many more.
You can catch them at the Wickerman Festival at the end of July in Dumfries and Galloway.
They are also giving away a signed copy of their EP, which consists of 5 of their own songs, to whoever sponsors them the most for Sick Kids Save Point 2011, so go sponsor them HERE.
Drummer Shorty, who will be taking part with Guitarist Dunk, says that they are "proud
to be taking part and raising money for this fine charity".

And while you're at it, go like them on Facebook and check out their itunes..

Domain migration

2011-06-22T17:02:00.000+01:00

We're pleased to say that Scotland's 24 hour videogames marathon is now at sickkidssavepoint.org, as you might have noticed above. This means you can email us directly at info@sickkidssavepoint.org, just in case there's any questions... Play Games. Save Kids. Win Stuff. What else would you need to know?

Rockstar North supports Sick Kids Save Point... again!

2011-06-14T11:59:00.002+01:00

We are delighted to announce that local game maestros Rockstar North, creators of Grand Theft Auto, have again decided to back Sick Kids Save Point. Last year would not have been possible without their incredible support - indeed many Rockstar employees took part!

Watch this space for details on the prizes that Rockstar have donated - Raise £100 in sponsorship for your marathon and you will be entered into the prize draw automatically. Other companies have offered prizes too, and we will announce them in due course... Play Games. Save Kids. AND Win Stuff. Pretty Good eh?

Who we are raising for?

2011-06-10T09:52:00.000+01:00

Green Living Heroes

2011-06-09T14:21:00.001+01:00

We're looking forward to the new Green lantern movie, and to celebrate we've done our own XBOX/Green lantern mash up... Just to show that gamers can be heroes too - raising vital money for kids by playing games past the fun barrier.

Play Games. Save Kids. Win Stuff.

Sign up for Sick Kids Save Point by pressing the Just giving button on the right....

Welcome!

2011-06-04T10:00:00.002+01:00

So you've picked up a flyer, and you want to know what this is all about, right?
Sick Kids Save Point is a 24 hour gaming marathon organised on behalf of the Sick Kids Friends Foundation, in which gamers attempt to play games for 24 hours straight to raise money for the charity, benefiting patients and families at the Sick Kids Hospital, Edinburgh. Under 18s accumulate the 24 hours between a group.

WHERE? - In your own homes, or in groups.
WHEN? - This October, at some point over the weekend of the 7th-9th. We all do it together so we can support each other on facebook and twitter (and make sure we haven't dozed off!)

If you think you could do it then follow the guidelines on the right on how to sign up, and welcome aboard! If not please consider sponsoring us to raise money for this vital charity - just press the button on the right to find the event's Just Giving page.

Our latest flyer

2011-06-01T11:03:00.000+01:00

See you at the meadows festival this weekend.

Much Less Than Six...

2011-05-28T11:58:00.000+01:00

In an incredible feat of organisation, a group known as 'Less than six' (David, Robert, Kim and Bob) have already drawn up a comprehensive plan for their Sick Kids Save Point marathon. Impressively this group of brave adventurers will be Rocking out with Rock Band, high-speed waggling with Super Smash Bros on the Wii and playing some table top rpgs such as Dungeons and Dragons. But perhaps the most impressive feat of all in their plan is a game known mysteriously as '1000 Blank White cards' - could this be the hardest marathon challenge yet? Surely nothing could be more sleep inducing than a card game involving no stimulation whatsoever!

In all seriousness though, these folks deserve all the support we can give them, especially because they've an integrated forfeit scheme which will inevitably result in them donating a lot out of their own pockets on top of the sleep deprivation. Check out their Just Giving pages here, and go follow them on twitter

Win A Portal 2 t-shirt for International Geek Pride day!!

2011-05-24T19:53:00.001+01:00

The 25th May is officially International Geek Pride Day and, as fans of the Hitch-hiker's Guide to the Galaxy will know, International Towel Day. To celebrate this illustrious occasion the clever folks over at Powwownow put their heads together (geddit?) and donated the following prizes:

Awesome Appear Infographic Portal 2 tee from Valve's store!

Amazing Hitchhiker's guide towel from thinkgeek.com!

How to enter? Simples!

1. Follow @sksavepoint on twitter

2. Follow @powwownow on twitter

3. Tweet this "I want to win #towelday and #geekday gear from @sksavepoint courtesy of @powwownow. RT & Read this to enter! http://bit.ly/muFECC"

Thanks Powwownow, Free video conferencing rocks! We'll announce winners thursday.

SKSP Health Warning

2011-05-04T16:05:00.000+01:00

Our latest poster design shows the Sick Kids Friends Foundation Drop In Centre, which provides information, support, advice, activities complementary therapies and welfare benefits information for patients and their families. £1,000 raised funds the centre for two days, and allows SKFF to keep it stocked with books, art materials and other activities - even a Wii! That £1,000 target is one of our silver trophies. Check out our other trophies here

Gorgeous new art...

2011-04-30T05:27:00.007+01:00

The above picture was a donation by games industry Visual Development Artist Andrew Macdonald - Much kudos and thanks to him for a gorgeous realisation of our little 8-bit logo, inspired by the Sick Kids logo itself. This will be really useful Andrew, thank you! We hope to see you or some of your fellow ex-pat Scots working in the games industry down south or overseas taking part in Sick Kids Save Point this year!

Play Games. Save Kids. Win Stuff

2011-04-05T16:22:00.002+01:00

Sick Kids Save Point is a 24 hour gaming marathon between 7th -9th October 2011. Join us and help support The Sick Kids hospital, Edinburgh, which treats poorly children from all over the country.

And we're off!

2011-04-05T16:19:00.002+01:00

One of the 2011 SKSP participants, Owen McAdam, has got the ball rolling for this year by already raising £50 in sponsorship for his marathon in October. With gift aid this gets the Sick Kids Save Point 2011 total off to a flying £64.10 start, and its only April!!

Owen's JustGiving fundraising page tells us why he's decided to put himself through 24 hours of videogames all over again:

"I decided to enter SKSP for the 2nd year to help raise money for the sick kids hospital in edinburgh as they saved the life of one of my best friends kids. His son, Nathan, was born but had severe breathing difficulties and was very close to the edge and sadly would not have made it but for the efforts of all the staff at the sick kids.

My sister is also a pediatric nurse who used to work at the sick kids and has told me countless times about the great work they do helping little kids who fall seriously ill."

Last year Owen won some exclusive Grand Theft Auto goodies in our prize draw, he's already two-thirds of the way to entering the draw for this year...

Presenting... The top player 2010!

2011-03-25T16:02:00.000Z

The Sick Kids Save Point top player award went to Anthony Gowland, a.k.a Freakyzoid, who raised a staggering £778.05 in sponsorship. Being disorganised, SKSP only just got round to presenting Tony with his one-of-a-kind tee. Freakyzoid interrupted his busy schedule at Rockstar North to meet us and receive his teeshirt, which bears a batman-esque symbol on the front. 2011's top fundraiser will also receive a personalised prize, so get those sponsorship requests out!

In the meantime, check out Freakyzoid's blog 'Mainly About Games', starting with his personal SKSP story!

Sign up Today!

2011-03-08T13:05:00.003Z

Just Giving are now ready to let you set up your page! Just click the button below to register as part of Sick Kids Save Point 2011...

Join us for SKSP 2011!

2011-02-24T09:48:00.006Z

In 2010 Gamers all over Scotland undertook a 24-hour gaming marathon and raised over £7,000 for the Sick Kids Friends Foundation, who help the patients and their families at the Sick Kids Hospital, Edinburgh. They were supported by Edinburgh's own Rockstar North, the creators of Grand Theft Auto. Codemasters UK also donated Nintendo DS lites for the brave children in the wards of the Sick Kids Hospital. Our top player was Freakyzoid, who raised a staggering £778.05 including gift aid.

As they attempted to play games for 24 hours they kept in contact through facebook and twitter, and a strong gaming community emerged. Now is your chance to join that community, because this year we plan to do it all again, only this time bigger and better!

In various 24 hour slots between 12.00am Friday 7th October and 11.59pm Sunday 9th October gamers will be undertaking a marathon on thier sofa. They will be collecting sponsorship through Just Giving to help an important local charity. If you want to be part of it, join us on facebook and twitter, and watch this space for further details....

International winners

2010-08-29T13:53:00.003+01:00

As well as those that have been enjoying their prizes like Owen here with his GTA goodies, our charity auction is going well on ebay. People from Italy and Russia have been bidding on the items donated by Rockstar North. It's not too late to bid on most of our Rockstar goodies - keep checking our ebay listings

DowntoforitX do it all again for ExtraLife

2010-08-26T10:05:00.003+01:00

The guys from scottish gaming podcast DowntoforitX have only just recovered from Sick Kids Save Point, and now they're doing it all again for the Sick Kids as part of ExtraLife! You can support them HERE

Smiles all round.

2010-08-11T15:10:00.003+01:00

As the dust settles on our mammoth gaming undertaking, work at the Sick Kids goes on. A lovely little boy called Aiden - a patient cared for in ward 7 - was thrilled to be the first to try out the DS and Bella Sara game donated as part of Sick Kids Save Point by the guys at Codemasters. Pink is actually Aiden's favourite colour and he was more than happy to pose with Play Specialist Lorraine for a few photos. Hopefully Sick Kids Save Point can continue to raise some much needed smiles in the future.

The Aftermath 1

2010-08-09T23:15:00.001+01:00

Read our top fundraiser FreakyZoid talk about his Sick Kids Save Point marathon on his blog...

Winners!!!

2010-08-09T14:45:00.003+01:00

Congratulations to the following fundraisers who won. Email me at tom.freeman@virgin.net to tell me your shipping details.

-GTA4 Special Edition (including art book, soundtrack etc) and GTA Liberty City Stories for Xbox 360 - ANTHONY BOWERS
-GTA3, Vice City & San Andreas for Xbox - JAMIE YOUNGER
-GTA4 for Windows - NEIL WYKES
-Bioshock 2 and Red Dead Redemption for Xbox 360 - COL WALDER
-Red Dead Redemption Limited Edition for PS3 - STEPHEN GOODALL
-Manhunter 2 and GTA chinatown wars for PSP - WILLIAM KENNEDY
-Beaterator and Midnight Club LA for PSP - ISLA ESPLIN
-5 t-shirts - CONOR, WAYNE, MIKE M, STUZO & STEEV (let us know your size and that's the T you'll get)
-White IV T(L)
-Black Alderney Algonquin Bohan Broker & Dukes T (M)
-Blue Hercules Gym T (L)
-Pink Ballad of Gay Tony T (XL)
-Yellow Beaterator T (L)

-Rockstar baseball cap and mug- ROSS AITKEN
-Red Dead Redemption 'dynamite' candle and playing cards- MALCOLM SHIELDS
-GTA4 'Swingers' foam hand and PiBwasser pint glass - OWEN MCADAM
-Large GTA4 sticker set and umbrella - JACK WALL
-A copy of Beatles Rock Band solus for PS3 (thanks Dan!)- VGEVO
- Week pass for The Ministry of Gaming - IFOR

Huge thanks to Rockstar North.

The prize for the top overall fundraiser, in recognition of being the top player, goes to Anthony Gowland. Let us know your size for your special one of a kind t-shirt FreakyZoid.

Prizes not claimed within a month will be auctioned on ebay with all proceeds going to The Sick Kids Friends Foundation as part of the SKSP total.

Thanks!!

Tom

Prize Draw

2010-08-09T12:19:00.001+01:00

Well done everyone! I'll be doing the prize draw at 2.15. You can watch it at our Ustream channel. I promise the language will be better than the small hours of our marathon live...!

Cometh the HOUR

2010-08-05T09:40:00.006+01:00

So here we are, on the brink of something special. Are we prepared? Do we have water, coffee, eyedrops and the latest firmware?

The first participant kicking off is Ifor, who will be playing from midnight on Friday morning! He'll be updating us on the Official Playstation forums, and on Facebook. Go for it Ifor - you are the SKSP pioneer, the pathfinder, the biker scout. I shall be monitoring your spirits with trepidation...
Isla claims she'll be next, because she's going to start 'as soon as I wake up'- roundabout 1am...! She'll edit together a video of her updates, which I'll post on here.

Jack and Jamie will start their Halo marathon at 8pm on friday. Here's hoping they get a power nap in before that evening start! You can follow their progress on twitter.

An hour later Wayne starts his 500 challenges Burnout effort. He'll be tearing up Paradise city on very little sleep, unless he can also get some power naps in first!

Saturday Morning sees most people starting, with games designer FreakyZoid (Anthony) getting underway at 8am. He'll be updating via twitter, and you can read his preperations on his blog..

Myself, Mike, Ross and Stuzo are kicking off at 9am. The first three will be streaming our marathon LIVE here. Come laugh at us. Stuzo will be streaming his effort here.
An hour later, DowntoforitX will be providing a far more entertaining stream I'm sure, as they start proceedings at 10am, as will Owen who will keep us up to date on facebook.

I don't have exact times for the rest of you yet, but I know that Stephen and Malcolm are due to kick off on Friday, and the last to start will be Anthony Bowers - a weekend late due to filming commitments...

You can track most of our participants via our twitter list. Don't forget to tell us what your playing and how spirits are.

Remember that we are making a difference to some very sick children..

Good luck, and may the force be with you.

SKSP trailer!!!

2010-08-02T00:58:00.002+01:00

Hear how Sick Kids Save Point was predicted by the ancient Mayans!
Hear endorsements by Rocky Balboa and others...!
Hear DowntoforitX's hilarious Sick Kids Save Point trailer here!

If you enjoy it please donate donate donate to their marathon...

Will he be Burnt out or in Paradise?

2010-07-31T14:25:00.006+01:00

One of our fundraisers, Wayne (aka 'jay0097' on the PSN) will be attempting an impressive target during his marathon. A self confessed Burnout Paradise addict, Wayne claims he can get all 500 challenges in the 24 hours. He'll have to delete his exisisting save, but, he says
"It's for the kids... I am getting support from a few of my online friends from around the world. All outstanding players of the game ... I have met the most compulsive Burnout players in the world ....ie me. In fact, i have done this before but not for charity - and i lasted 36 hours straight of Burnout .And yes you guessed it i was Burnt out by the end of it lol ..."

To sponsor Wayne in this, visit his fundraising page and give what you can. You can follow his progress on the Official Playstation Forums, where Wayne will be letting us know how he's getting on. See you in Paradise Waye!

Sick Kids thanks codemasters

2010-07-30T09:54:00.001+01:00

"Spending time in hospital can be very difficult for our young patients. Being away from their family and friends they can feel isolated and very bored. On behalf of the Sick Kids Hospital huge thanks to Codemasters for their generous donation of two DS and Bella Sara games. These will be greatly appreciated by the wards and will help to make our patients time spent in hospital that little bit better."

Ishbel Proctor, Play Specialist Coordinator, Royal Hospital for Sick Children, Edinburgh

I want to hold your hand...

2010-07-29T13:12:00.003+01:00

Its getting too exciting! Nearly a week to go before we lose control of our thumbs. Gamer friend Dan has donated a brand new copy of Beatles Rock Band for PS3 to add to our list of prizes!
We now have so many prizes it looks like we'll definitely be auctioning off some at the end of it all, which means yet more money to add to the growing total raised for the Sick Kids Friends Foundation.

Square Go's for the kids.

2010-07-29T08:51:00.002+01:00

Square-Go, the online gaming magazine, has featured us this week. Thanks for the support guys!

Codemasters support!

2010-07-28T13:29:00.005+01:00

We're thrilled to announce that, in support of Sick Kids Save Point, games giant codemasters have donated 2 brand new DS Lites with Bella Sara games to the Royal Hospital for Sick Children. Hopefully these will be enjoyed by patients for a long time. Thanks Codemasters!

Herald

2010-07-27T08:00:00.002+01:00

We've a mention in the Herald today.

Freaky two fingered push ups...

2010-07-26T15:55:00.003+01:00

Games designer 'Freakyzoid' has started planning for his marathon. You read all about his emulation of Rocky Balboa on his blog...

Changing perceptions...

2010-07-25T14:09:00.005+01:00

Let's face it, gaming gets pretty bad press. We're constantly accused of being anti social, having short attention spans, a taste for violence and leading kids into a life of crime. Never was that more evident than the slanderous story by the Daily Star last week that a Grand Theft Auto game based on the killings in Rothebury was in development.

Thankfully the Daily Star has 'unreservedly' apologised to Rockstar, admitting that there had been no attempts to 'check the accuracy' of the story. (i.e they made it up.). GTA has been the centre of controversy before, with people calling for the game to be banned despite the quite clear bbcf rating on the box. Rockstar have always maintained that they 'make games for adults'.

It seems incredible that in the same week as the Daily Star allegations, Rockstar North were quietly showing their true colours by giving substantial support to a local children's charity, and lending its backing to Sick Kids Save Point...
- Together we can show that gamers care about society, about the welfare of kids, that we are a community with a community spirit, and that we have an impressive attention span!

Gamers only Older

2010-07-24T11:31:00.003+01:00

Last October I listened to a podcast of guys taking part in the american game-a-thon Extra Life, which raises money for the cancer unit at Texas children's hospital. The podcast is called Welcome to the Goo, and it was hilarious as the two hosts updated every hour of their marathon, getting increasingly exhausted...

The podcast inspired Sick Kids Save Point. I wanted to do something similar for the Sick Kids here in Edinburgh.

Listen to the ExtraLife episodes for yourself, you might pick up some handy tipsfor your marathon...!

Welcome to the Goo Extra Life 2008
Welcome to the Goo Extra Life 2009

and I've since become a community writer for their website. You can read my latest article here. Guess what it's about...

Support from a vampire!

2010-07-23T16:44:00.006+01:00

As well as donating extremely generously to fellow forumer Ifor, UKVampire from the EU Playstation forums has also plugged us on his blog. To have a look, or just to get the latest PSN related news go visit Here...

Prize draw

2010-07-22T07:40:00.003+01:00

Thanks to generous sponosrship from
Rockstar North and The Ministry Of Gaming
we can announce several exciting prizes that could be won by participants of Sick Kids Save Point. Anyone who raises over £100 for the charity through sponsorship and gift aid will automatically enter the draw*. Now as well as helping provide valuable support and medical assistance to kids all over Scotland, you'll be playing for prizes!

Check out our full list of prizes

*Some prizes are for over 18s only. If the winner is under 18 an alternative will be offered.

4 New Trophies YO!

2010-07-19T21:44:00.004+01:00

Wow its been a great couple of days! And we have the trophies to prove it...
'If you build it, they will come'
-20 people to take part in Sick Kids Save Point (bronze)

'Listen to the Man'
- 2 organisations (Rockstar North, The Ministry of Gaming) sign up to participate or sponsor us (bronze)

'Let me complement you on your therapy already'
-£500 raised will provide an hour of complimentary therapy in the Drop in Centre for 10 children or their parents (silver)

'More than a drop in the ocean...'
-£1000 raised funds the Sick kids Drop in Centre for two whole days (silver)

For more details see our trophy list by following the link at the top of the page...

DowntoforitX!

2010-07-16T12:38:00.005+01:00

Our latest participant is the DowntoforitX podcast, who will be spearheading the VGEVO gaming community's SKSP team If you haven't heard it yet, go check out their feed. THIS is a gaming podcast quite unlike anything you'll have heard before!!! PODCAST

The guys are hoping to live stream their SKSP marathon, so watch this space for more info on that.

DowntoforitX is one of a collection of podcasts on the VGEVO network, a friendly gaming forum full of enthusiasts and hardcore gamers. You'll always find someone to play online if you join up - check out their forums today.

Our Latest Participant!

2010-07-15T08:01:00.007+01:00

I thought I'd share what our latest participant Owen McAdam has written on his Virgin Giving page, as it can help remind us why this charity is so important....

"I decided to enter this to help raise money for the sick kids hospital in edinburgh as they saved the life of one of my best friends kids.

His son, Nathan, was born but had severe breathing difficulties and was very close to the edge and sadly would not have made it but for the efforts of all the staff at the sick kids. My sister is also a paediactric nurse who used to work at the sick kids and has told me countless times about the great work they do helping little kids who fall seriously ill. To help with this i'm taking up the 24 gaming challenge! This will be horrendously difficult for me as i get bored after a few hours...

I'll mostly be playing a mix of "Dragonage:Origins (plus awakening expansion), Borderlands and All points bulletin (APB)" hopefully enough variety to stop me losing too much sanity!

If you can please donate whatever you feel you can spare as every single donation could go towards saving a childs life."

Show him some support and sponsor him today!

Making Plans...

2010-07-13T15:22:00.006+01:00

As our game-a-thon approaches, the brave Sick Kids Save Point participants are starting to draw up plans as to what they will play during their marathon. Xbox 360 player Jamie plans to play all of the Halo games. Will he get through them all? Also on the 360 Isla plans to max out her gamerscore on Left 4 Dead. Meanwhile on the PS3 Wayne will put his Burnout Paradise addiction to the test, and Neil is threatening to spend all 24 hours of his marathon in Liberty City!

Support them now by clicking on their names and sponsoring them today!! Or if your taking part, head on over to our forums and let us know what YOU'll be playing...

Want to take part, but don't have any games to play? No problem, SKSP recommends free arcade brawler/mmo Dungeon Fighter. Did we mention it's free? Great fun, and addictive enough to keep you going through your marathon...

There are still plenty people who are planning on taking part but haven't signed up yet - please, please get your virgin page set up today, if you leave it too long you'll have no time to collect sponsorship!

Tick Tock!

2010-06-30T10:16:00.004+01:00

The Hour approacheth! With just over a month to go until our marathon, several people have signed up and are collecting sponsorship as we speak. We need to push this month to get those donations coming in and get more people involved. Don't forget to tell all the gamers you know, and your local games shop - It's not too late to get involved - The Sick Kids Hospital needs YOU! :-)

Metal Gear Girl

2010-05-16T12:47:00.003+01:00

Enigmatic girl gamer Bunny Harley has plugged Sick Kids Save Point on her blog. Does this mean she'll be gunning for us online during Sick Kids Save Point?

Edinburgh Evening News

2010-05-16T12:36:00.001+01:00

We got a brief mention in the Edinburgh Evening News.

SKSP plugged

2010-05-14T09:51:00.002+01:00

We got a plug on the latest episode of the PSnation podcast. Go listen, and enjoy.

Sick Kids receives a power up from gaming geeks!

2010-05-14T00:44:00.001+01:00

PRESS RELEASE:
24-hour gaming ‘marathon’ “Sick Kids Save Point” to raise money for the Sick Kids Hospital.

Actors Malcolm Shields (Crying with Laughter, Hallam Foe, The Lost World), Tom Freeman (Greyfriars Bobby, Casualty), Neil Kent and Anthony Bowers (Happy Holidays) are joining with other Scottish gamers to attempt a sponsored ‘video games marathon’ in August to raise money for the Edinburgh Sick Kid’s Hospital in its 150th year.

The event will take place during the weekend of the 6th-8th August, with hardcore gamers playing games non-stop for 24 hours, under 18s and others will clock up their hours over the course of the weekend. It’s the first of its kind in this scale in the UK. A blog is being launched for the free event and over 30 people have already signed up. It is hoped more people will sign up as word gets out.

Event organiser Tom Freeman said: “I’m really impressed by the response from gamers from Edinburgh and beyond. We already have people signing up from Peebles to Inverness, which is testament to the work of the Sick Kids in treating children from all over the country.” Others already signed up include the local ‘DownToForIt X’ gaming podcast and members of the ‘SCO’ gaming clan, both of whom will be streaming live feeds of their marathon attempts online.

The Sick Kids Save Point blog (http://sickkidssavepoint.blogspot.com/) will act as the central hub for the event, while all fundraising is through Virgin Money Giving. People can also follow the event on Twitter or facebook.

Edinburgh based actor Freeman was inspired to help the Sick Kids Friends Foundation when he worked for a while in the hospital canteen. “I wanted to do something to help the brave kids who are patients there, and to reward the medical staff who work tirelessly to help them.” he says “The idea of Sick Kids Save Point was also inspired by 'ExtraLife', an American Gaming marathon to benefit Texas Children's Hospital. I wanted to do something similar for my local kid’s hospital. People often think of gamers as ‘geeks’, pallid antisocial troglodytes who are useless at social interaction. This is an opportunity for us to show that we can support a great local cause, a hospital in the heart of our community. 24 hours of non-stop gaming is going to be tough. In the same way that a marathon runner goes that extra distance for charity, we are going to be pushing past the ‘fun barrier’ here. ”

Organisers hope this will rise to thousands for the Sick Kids Friends Foundation.

Official SKSP forums!

2010-05-04T22:59:00.001+01:00

If you have unanswered questions or feedback to give us, or even if you just want to connect with other people taking part, check out our new Forums and be part of this growing community.

Personal challenges

2010-05-03T13:52:00.003+01:00

So you've set up your Virgin Fundraising page. You've sent out that chain email begging for sponsorship. You've read our tips and safety guidelines...
What now? Well, it's still a little early to plan what you'll be playing during your marathon, so here's a couple of ideas for personal challenges to set yourself for the time being:
*Tell at least three friends, colleagues or family members about Sick Kids Save Point *Get 5 people to sponsor you on your page before the 31st May
*Get the grumpiest, most disapproving of video games type person you can think of to sponsor you. That's a tough one!!
* Talk someone you know into taking part so you won't be playing alone come August...

Trophy number 3!!

2010-04-23T09:20:00.002+01:00

'You Never Heard Of The Healing Power of Laughter?'-a further £50 raised pays for Clown Doctors visits which provides laughter for young patients (bronze)

FAQ

2010-04-21T08:10:00.005+01:00

People have been asking some valid questions, so I thought I'd post a few here for everyone's benefit...

Does it cost me anything to actually run the event aside from obviously electricity? How do we know that this is official?
-gawd no, we wouldn't CHARGE people to do a charity marathon! I don't want the responsibility of handling donation money, thats why Virgin money Giving are doing it. (they collect sponsorship for the London marathon, great north run etc)

But what about Virgin Money? They talk about this 'event fee' thingme?
-the event fee is what SKFF paid to set it up. participants pay nothing.. nada . Gift Aid is reclaimed from the Government and passed to charities in full. Fundraisers and their sponsors don’t pay a penny to use Virgin Money Giving, and every donation goes directly to the charity.

Do we pick our own games?, does it have to be just one big server ie warhawk? Can we do it from home or do we have to have a set base of operations, where we all would meet up?
- The marathon takes place in folks own homes, they can pick any 24 hour slot between friday the 6th and sunday 8th August. You could meet up, play as individuals or all do it during the same hours; organise however you guys wanted to play it.

Only one problem i see is who would be willing to sponsor me just for gaming? Anyone that knows me will just laugh in ma face if i ask them for money (my sister already has lol)
-If people seem reluctant to sponsor you, stress that its for a good cause, and that its going to be HARD! Marathon runners enjoy running, but 26 miles is a test. This is exactly the same. If you don't get a lot of sponsorship it doesn't matter - every little bit makes a difference. There are other ways to raise money too, for example during Extra Life gamers played each other online for money (e.g the loser in Street Fighter 4 donates a dollar)

Bam! 2nd trophy yo!

2010-04-18T21:25:00.004+01:00

Wow, no sooner had we announced our first trophy, but our second one comes in straight away!

'Bravery award'-a further £20 raised pays for reward box toys, given to kids who have a particularly difficult procedure (bronze)

Lets keep up this momentum folks! To help us earn trophies, please click the Virgin 'start fundraising' button on the left and get involved!

1st Trophy yo!

2010-04-18T21:18:00.006+01:00

Only a few days old, and already Sick Kids Save Point has earned its first trophy!

'Hiya Pals!!'-£10 raised pays for hospital welcome presents for 5 sick children. (bronze)

To see our trophy list of objectives click here

We have lift off!

2010-04-14T17:48:00.002+01:00

I'm proud to announce that everything has been finalised over at virgin money giving, and we are set to launch. Challenge yourself to a different kind of marathon, and help kids from all over the country who are in desperate need of medical assistance and comforting. You can make a difference!

Campaign launched!

2010-03-28T14:30:00.007+01:00

Gamers! Have you ever spent more time than you should on a gaming session? Completed that adventure in one sitting? Played a whole world cup in FIFA from qualification to final without getting up? Swung that Wii-mote till your arms hurt?

But are you hardcore enough to go that little bit further for a good cause? In August 2010 gamers across scotland will be taking part in a 24-hour gaming challenge to raise money for the Sick Kids Friend's Foundation. And when Sick Kids Save Point is all over you’ll be the proud owner of the feeling that comes with having raised a grand total and the hopes of countless kids.

Game ON!