It's not often that a bloody game will be promoted with actual blood, but Bethesda Softworks is doing just that with a blood drive being held at QuakeCon this weekend. The blood drive is from the American Red Cross and it is to promote upcoming horror game The Evil Within.
Attendees of QuakeCon, taking place at the Hilton Anatole Hotel in Dallas, Texas from July 17 to 20, can sign up at the convention to donate blood. The actual blood drive will take place Friday and Saturday from 11:00 a.m to 5:00 p.m. local time.
Bethesda is calling the promotion "The Good Within Blood Drive." Those who donate blood will walk away with an official The Evil Within "chill pack," a unique promotional item that is an ice pack shaped as a blood bag and branded with The Evil Within logo. Blood donors must be at least 17 years old and follow certain guidelines, which are detailed at the American Red Cross website.
"QuakeCon has a great group of attendees who we think will want to help the community by donating blood," said Pete Hines, VP of PR and Marketing for Bethesda Softworks in a statement. "The American Red Cross is a terrific organization, and we're thrilled to welcome them to QuakeCon."
"The Red Cross is grateful for Bethesda Softworks' invitation to host a blood drive during such a critical time," said Jan Hale, External Communications Manager at the American Red Cross, in the statement. "The summer months are a particularly difficult period for blood collections and being a part of this event gives us more opportunities to help save lives."
QuakeCon is the annual convention held by Bethesda and Id Software owners ZeniMax Media to promote its games. It is named after Id's famous first-person shooter Quake. The convention usually features a variety of videogame tournaments.
The Evil Within is a horror game being published by Bethesda, developed by Tango Gameworks and directed by Shinji Mikami. Mikami has gained renown in the gaming industry for popularizing the "Survival Horror" genre with the Resident Evil series of games that he made when he was at Capcom.
With the Resident Evil series venturing further into action game territory over the last few games, The Evil Within is seen as a return to the basics of horror, by featuring not just gory action, but a creepy atmosphere, strange mysteries and terrifying situations.
The Evil Within will be released for PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One and PC on October 21.
