After raising a staggering £10k at Insomnia64, the gaming festival has teamed up with the two charities in the hope that the gaming community will pull together for another successful year.

SpecialEffect aims to bring fun and inclusion into the lives of those with physical disabilities by helping them to play video games. The charity is changing the game with their state-of-the-art technology, carefully tailored to every individual’s needs; from modified gaming controllers to eye-control systems. At a festival where thousands gather to share their love and enjoyment of gaming, i65 feels it is the perfect opportunity to raise awareness of a charity that wants to make video games accessible to everyone.

Talking about the charity pledges of Insomnia Gaming Festival, Phil Crawford, one of the organisers of i65, commented: “We believe that everyone should be able to experience the gaming world in all its glory and that’s why we’ve partnered up with some amazing charities so this is possible. We hope that SpecialEffect is a charity that will strike a chord in every gamer and inspire them to contribute to a cause so close to our hearts.”

Insomnia’s good deeds don’t stop there, however. In addition to SpecialEffect, the festival will also be supporting the UK Guide Dogs after raising £3,350 for the charity at i64. The charity’s furry friends will be joining the festival in August and one very special puppy will be trained with the money raised.

Temporarily turning gamers’ heads away from the screens, the battle will commence to pick a name for the sponsored guide dog. At April’s festival, the winning name chosen was Winston: a homage to a character in the fan-favourite, Overwatch. Insomnia hopes to help Guide Dogs achieve their vision of a future where every person with sight loss has the ability to live their lives to the fullest.

“We’ve worked with the UK Guide Dogs charity for the past ten tournaments and it’s a partnership we’re so proud of. Thanks to the generous support of our festival goers, we have sponsored seven puppies and raised a total of £100,000.

“Working with charities like SpecialEffect and UK Guide Dogs is incredibly important to the entire team behind Insomnia. The festival has such an amazing and warm atmosphere, but the fact that it’s helping those in our community who need extra support to feel more included makes it even more rewarding. It takes the spirit of the four-day festival and increases its impact to reach far beyond the long weekend: for that, we couldn’t be prouder,” concluded Phil.