Welsh Icons News | Charity Pokémon marathon at Aberystwyth University

At 7pm on the 3rd of April, 2012, 6 brave Aberystwyth University students will embark on a 96 hour long Pokémon hunt in the name of charity, as part of their ‘Production Research Placement’ work experience module in the Department of Theatre, Film and Television Studies.

The event will be hosted by the Aberystwyth Guild of Students.

Pokémon are the small yet powerful monsters that inhabit the computer game worlds created by Nintendo in the eponymous series of games, cartoons, films and trading cards; to catch them is our 6 heroes’ real test, and to raise money for charity is their cause.

Following on from the success of last year’s ‘Pokémon4Japan’ live-stream event, which raised £4,000 for the victims of the Japanese earthquake and tsunami, this year’s Pokémon marathon, entitled ‘Full Restore’, will raise money for the British Red Cross Disaster Fund.

Each donation made will enable the general public to interact directly with the games being played.

The nature of the interaction will vary, depending on the size of donation made to the cause; from requesting the capture of a specific Pokémon, to delegating which attack a Pokémon should use mid-battle, to even naming the hero and the villain of each individual game.

The gamers will also accept real life requests for things to do whilst playing, so if you would like to watch someone train their Pikachu whilst singing ‘Thunder Road’, or see a player explore Kanto or Johto whilst eating fish fingers and custard, then this is the Pokémon marathon for you!

Donations can be made, and the live-stream can be viewed on Full Restore’s own website – www.fullrestore.co.uk . It can be followed on Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus, and YouTube.

Dafydd Sills-Jones, ‘Production Research Placement’ module co-ordinator, said:

“The ‘Production Research Placement’ module is designed to give students the space to think about their post-university careers in the 2nd year. The ‘Pokemon Marathon’ is a particularly inventive way of meeting the module’s brief, and I congratulate the students on their hard work. That it is for such a worthy cause is truly touching.”

Last year, the event not only received worldwide attention from Pokémon fans, particularly in Japan, North America and Europe, but was also noticed by big celebrity names including Edgar Wright, Amanda Palmer and Justin Bieber.

As Catherine Beckham, Societies and Volunteering Administrator of the Aberystwyth University Student’s Guild, said: “I was really impressed with the enterprise shown by the Aberystwyth students in response to the Japanese Tsunami last year.

This year, I endeavoured to secure support for them from the Aberystwyth Guild of Students and the University in hosting and promoting this remarkable project. Ben Stevens and the team will be broadcasting live from the Student Union and I wish them every success with their fundraising.”

When asked about the project, one of the gamers, Alice Rourke, echoed Catherine’s words: “The last event holds a special place in my heart due to the community and online family it created. I feel as though we made a real connection with our audience that I hope we continue this year.”

And Ben Stevens remarked: “I’ve been moved by the generosity of everybody who has donated and supported us throughout our events. With their help we’re hoping to raise even more money for the cause.”

So why not join the online community created by Alice, Ben, Kelly Jones, Emma Bradshaw, Josh Jordan, and Philip Potter between the 3rd and the 7th of April 2012? There’s no better team, and with your help, they’re bound to catch ‘em all!