Experience an adventure with George the Giraffe while supporting the programs at Valley Children’s Hospital.
Castle on the Coast, the world’s first video game specially developed for a children’s hospital, was announced today. It comes from Klabater, Valley Children’s Hospital, and Big Heart Productions. This 3D platformer starring George the Giraffe, the official mascot of Valley Children’s Hospital in California, raises funds for Valley Children’s Healthcare via a video game adventure.
Join George the Giraffe
In this hand-drawn 3D game, George must navigate hard levels filled with crystal tunnels, stone-laden passageways, and strange parallel realms while attempting to reconcile the families of two powerful and feuding wizards.
For over seven decades, George has represented the compassion and care offered at Valley Children’s. Giraffes were “adopted” as the hospital’s symbol by its five founding moms since they have the largest heart of any terrestrial mammal. Every day, that heart is apparent in the care delivered at Valley Children’s.
After numerous meetings, ideas, and proposals, the partnership between Valley Children’s, Big Heart Productions, and Klabater has finally come to fruition, culminating in the premiere of this popular mascot in a video game.
Designed for children in and out of the hospital
Video games provide therapeutic benefits as a technique of elevating mood, reducing pain, and improving health outcomes for convalescing pediatric patients, according to studies and testimonies. Healthcare practitioners acknowledge video games’ healing power as a supplement to standard treatments that can aid in the recovery from serious illnesses. Not only that, but in a year as unusual and challenging as 2020, video games were many children’s companions in the face of social alienation.
Castle on the Coast has included a co-op mode, in which a second player may take on the role of Swirlz, George’s squirrel companion. Swirlz sits in George’s backpack in the game and needs to focus solely on shooting items. The co-op mode was particularly created for Valley Children’s youngsters under the age of six, as well as those who may be disabled and have difficulties manipulating the controller.
“This video game – the first of its kind by a children’s hospital in the country – is another way we can bring some fun into the kids’ lives we see. And now kids around the world who may help George navigate the journey through the Castle on the Coast,” says Todd Suntrapak, President and CEO of Valley Children’s Healthcare.
Castle on the Coast will be available for $14.99 on Nintendo Switch and PC via Steam globally on December 2, 2021. If you purchase the game on Cyber Monday, you will receive a 10% discount on the pre-order, with a portion of the proceeds benefiting the programs of Valley Children’s Hospital, which provides Central California’s only high-quality comprehensive care exclusively for children from infancy to young adulthood.
