Full Hearts Marathon for Child’s Play Final Wrap-Up

It has been a full week since we started playing The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim for Child’s Play.

One solid week.

And yet it was probably one of the fastest weeks I can remember. That’s probably mostly due to Skyrim‘s addictive personality traits. You boot the game up. Promise yourself  “I’m only going to play for five minutes,” and the next thing you know, it’s Monday morning and you’ve raised over $3,600 for charity.

Organizing the event was no small task. Of course, on the outside, it looks like a bunch of guys just playing a game and asking for money to give to children. But there’s a lot that goes into this sort of event. And I want to take a moment to say thank you to everyone that made this possible. I apologize in advance if I happen to leave anyone out.

To Justin Johnston 

Justin, this event couldn’t have happened without you. Your efforts kept us on track to meet our goals, and without you, we wouldn’t have reached out to so many people like the Unofficial Elder Scrolls Pages, Planet Elder Scrolls, and Bethesda Softworks. You were the cornerstone of the success to this charity marathon. I am in your debt and I’m certain you’ve made a lot of children very happy this holiday season. My horned hat’s off to you.

To Marcos “Shen” Forgash

Shen, thanks for taking the time to show us the proper way to stream. We were bumbling a bit last year by using a different streaming service. But thanks to your persistent livecasting, we were able to put forward a better product for the viewers, which I’m absolutely certain led to a larger audience. Thank for you helping us reach out to Twitch.tv.

To the rest of the Elder-Geek.com staff

You’re all remarkable people. I can’t thank you enough for what you do for this site on a daily basis. And my gratitude only deepens when I think of what you’ve done to help this charity marathon. You filled in unappealing time slots. You kept conversations rolling even after hours of gameplay. You kept our visitors and donors entertained. And you always had your trusty flamethrowers at your sides when the trolls came out from under their bridges.

To Gustav and the rest of the GamersGate staff

First, a very heartfelt thank you for generously donating Bastion, The King Arthur Collection, Mount & Blade: Complete, Orcs Must Die!, Torchlight, and Might and Magic Heroes VI.  These games helped drive more attention to our event, and obviously helped us raise even more money for charity. Thank you by helping spread the word through your Twitter and Facebook feeds. Your digital distribution service is growing by leaps and bounds, and we’re honored to have you as a sponsor.

But, I’d like to personally thank Gustav for streaming with us. Our viewers absolutely glommed onto your friendly personality. GamersGate is lucky to have you as a staff member!

To Wes Johnson

How could anyone not thank the man with the golden voice? Wes, you are truly an inspiration. Not only did you help us record some commercials for the event, but you joined in the chat during the stream as well. Thank you for donating your time, your talents, and your fantastic sense of humor. I hope this charity marathon started your holiday season on the right foot. And it fills me with glee to see your voice being used once again in yet anther Elder Scrolls game. It wouldn’t be the same without you. Fans went nuts when they heard your “Ancestral Spirit” voice in the game. And from that moment on, they demanded that we “summon Wes” whenever we found ourselves in trouble. I hope you had a chance to see it!

I will see you at MAGFest! Cheese for everyone!

To NZXT

Tomorrow morning the products you donated will ship all across the United States to their lucky new owners. It’s a mixed set of emotions for me. Due to my untreatable affliction of “shiny metal fever” I’m used to spilling over with anticipation for new hardware to ARRIVE in the mail. I normally don’t send it AWAY. But this is for a fantastic cause so I’m not sure if I should be smiling or crying.

But seriously, thank you very much for sponsoring this event by donating hardware and helping spread the word through your Twitter and Facebook feeds. Your efforts directly resulted in us raising more money for Child’s Play. I thank you. Elder-Geek.com as a whole thanks you. I’m sure the children’s hospitals are thanking you too.

To the Unofficial Elder Scrolls Pages

“Thank you” isn’t appropriate for the gratitude I feel for your generous donation. When I first heard of your matching pledge of $1,000, my jaw hit the floor. In fact, I’ve yet to pick it back up. But the moment that news hit my desk, I knew this would be a special year for our charity drive.

I personally regularly visit your website for my private geeky needs, and it warms my heart to know what kind of people help put it all together. Here’s to you!

To Bethesda Softworks

Fully legitimizing our charity event, Bethesda Softworks sent along a heaping pile of Skyrim helmets to help us raise money for Child’s Play. Their sponsorship added some much needed flair to the event, and quite frankly, they helped us stand out among the rest of the non-charity streamers that day.

Thank you to everyone at Bethesda. Not only have you made one of the greatest games in the past 20 years, but you’ve helped a great deal of children in need this holiday season.

And last, but CERTAINLY not least, to our fans both new and old

Creating the life and adventures of Smolf Boogins with you was an honor. He and his merry band of “friends” will live on through our live streams on Twitch and Justin.tv. You haven’t seen the last of him.

Thank all of you for donating and spreading the word. Thanks for making us laugh, and thank YOU for keeping US entertained over the course of our 48 hour marathon. Thank you for watching! And for those of you lucky enough to get a helmet, wear them with pride! Take a photo of yourself with your helmet and send them in! We’ll make a Warriors of Boogins post on the site about it.

Here. I’ll get us all started.

But, you’re here for the fan art and the save files! I won’t keep you waiting any longer! Begin your adventures of Smolf right here!

And of course, enjoy the fan art!

Warm regards,

Randy