Playing games for a good cause
Global Gaming Initiative recently developed Sidekick Cycle to raise money for a variety of charities. Courtesy of iTunes
Endless nights spent trying to beat the challenging levels of Candy Crush can now be rewarded with a sense of charitable satisfaction. Global Gaming Initiative has created an app which allows iPhone users around the world to benefit a charity through their gaming.
Courtesy of iTunes
Founded in 2010, the Global Gaming Initiative is an organization that develops games to support different causes. Its new app, Sidekick Cycle, contributes 50 percent of its revenue to World Bicycle Relief, a nonprofit organization that provides bicycles for children and adults in Southeast Asia, Africa and South America.
“I never knew there was an app that can benefit a charity. I’ll definitely try to start playing this app instead of others, because I know that it’s for a good cause,” Convent of the Sacred Heart sophomore Lucy Alderson-Smith said.
The game is appropriate for all age groups, and involves tapping the screen to make a bicycle accelerate through mountains and plains. Sidekick Cycle currently offers 30 levels, but Global Gaming Initiative has promised to update the game with more levels and new features.
Although the app is free, it raises money through in-app purchases. These include customizing the bike, upgrading the gear on the bike and the player, and adding a sidekick. A sidekick can be any animal, such as a rhino, which helps increase the strength and speed of the bike.
Although the app is currently only available for Apple products, the game will be accessible for Android phones later this year.
“I really like the idea that they’ve developed through this game and I hope that other organizations will help use the money from in-app purchases for charity,” sophomore Cynthia Thomas said.
-Katie Nail, Staff Writer
Sources:
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/24/technology/personaltech/tap-and-swipe-for-a-good-cause.html?_r=0
