Back in May,
the team over at Blizzard released a timed Pink Mercy skin for their team-based multiplayer
Overwatch. The Pink Mercy skin was a timed exclusive and all skin sales were going to support the Breast Cancer Research Foundation(BCRF). Blizzard even mentioned that they were also guaranteeing a minimum donation of $250,000 USD.
The Pink Mercy skin would become available from the 8th of May through the 21st of May, and Blizzard were even offering limited edition Pink Mercy shirts for charity that players could find at the Blizzard Gear Stroe, in hopes to have the whole community partake in this fundraiser to help breast cancer research.
Yesterday, the official
Overwatch Twitter account confirmed that they were able to raise up to a very impressive $12.7 million USD thanks to the Pink Mercy skin, and the other limited edition merchandise offered at the Blizzard Gear Store. On the official
Overwatch site, they even mention that this is the largest donation by a corporate partner in Breast Cancer Research Foundation's 25-year history, thanking fans for their support.
Overwatch Twitch streams also managed to raise a very respectable $130,000 USD(in addition to the $12.7 million) in donations by watching 14 different
Overwatch stars streaming their games on the streaming platform.
It really is nice to see the gaming community do charity events like these to help institutions find cures for cancer. The gaming community has always been very involved when it comes to charity events, raising funds by doing speedrunning events that go on for days, in which they receive donations from viewers and attendees. To the team over at Blizzard Entertainment and the
Overwatch community, hats off to you.