If you’re a gamer, you’ve probably heard of Polish company CD Project Red. They created the award-winning The Witcher series, an adaptation of a Polish fantasy book series by the same name written by Andrzej Sapkowski. More recently, they’ve launched the Gwent online game and app. It’s proved to be a hit among players and CD Project decided to use it to support a noble cause and donated a Gwent card to the auction. All proceeds go to Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity. They managed to raise an impressive sum of 55,199 PLN (approximately € 12,715).
Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity is Poland’s most famous charity and it could be to some extent compared to the British Red Nose. Their objective is to save lives of children in paediatric wards and to improve medical care in geriatric wards. Although the charity works all year round, every year the most important moment is the Grand Finale. There are fundraisers all over the country (and even abroad!) and you can see tons of people sporting red heart stickers, which are the symbol of the GOCC, on their coats, bags or hats. The celebration of the 25th Finale of the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity, on Jan 15, wasn’t any different.
Loads of people auctioned their items to help the cause. CD Project donated a very special thing: a custom card in the new deck. The auction was called YOUR FACE IN GWENT: THE WITCHER CARD GAME.
“In this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, you can become one of the heroes or heroines illustrating a card that has the chance to be loved and feared by players all around the world!” says the description of the auction.
It was exactly what it said on the box: whoever won, gets to have their own personalised card in the new Gwent card deck. The sum they managed the raise surpassed everyone’s expectation.
“If for the opportunity to have your face on a card in the newest game of the Witcher’s creators, the bidder offers over 55,000 PLN, I have to tell you, even though I have the numbers before my very eyes, I’m still totally shocked,” says Jurek Owsiak, the Chairman of the GOCC foundation.
