Last year was the first time I participated in Extra Life, a 24-hour charity video gaming marathon to benefit the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals. Thanks to the generosity of many friends, family, and readers, we raised $1,962 for Boston Children’s Hospital, part of a record-breaking $2 million total raised by Extra Life supporters for hospitals across the country!

Now that you’ve been reminded of how much good we did last year, you’ll be happy to know that Extra Life 2013 will soon be upon us. This year we’re doing it bigger and better than ever before, and (thanks to our continued blind adherence to the bizarre tradition of Daylight Savings Time), we’re also doing it for one hour longer.

HOW CAN I CONTRIBUTE?

Given the variety of attitudes towards video games and/or helping sick children, you might be wondering about the best way to help. Fortunately, I’ve laid out all possible scenarios so that you can find the level of engagement that’s right for you.

IF YOU LOVE BOTH VIDEO GAMES AND HELPING SICK CHILDREN:

You should donate to my fundraising campaign through the Extra Life website or on the donation panel on the right, but also what you should do is SIGN UP FOR EXTRA LIFE YOURSELF BY FOLLOWING THIS LINK. Then, you can raise money for the Children’s Miracle Network hospital of your choice, and starting on November 2nd, you’ll have an excuse to play video games for 25 hours. (The hours don’t actually have to be consecutive, though that’s not what I’ve told my wife.)

IF YOU LOVE VIDEO GAMES, BUT HATE HELPING SICK CHILDREN:

You should still sign up for Extra Life, because you shouldn’t let your hatred of sick children keep you from participating in the only event where it’s acceptable to play video games for 25 hours straight. Also, I imagine your utter lack of compassion has made you unwelcome in most social circles, so a little charity work wouldn’t be the worst idea for your public image.

IF YOU LOVE HELPING SICK CHILDREN, BUT HATE VIDEO GAMES:

Donate money to my campaign. You’ll feel good about helping sick kids, and in exchange I promise to play up all the games and there will be none left to bother you.

IF YOU HATE BOTH VIDEO GAMES AND HELPING SICK CHILDREN:

I award you no points, and may God have mercy on your soul.

Well, that covers the basics. To recap: (1) donate to Extra Life, (2) sign up for Extra Life, and (3) check back here at Applied Gaming on November 2nd for my Extra Life 2013 live blog. Let’s reach our goal for Boston Children’s Hospital!

What game or games do you think I should play this year? Let me know in the comments!