Take It Out

Gaming Spotlight: Gamers vs COVID-19

Gamers vs COVID-19 is a community of virus-killing, society-supporting, game-loving heroes, founded to raise awareness about the importance of social distancing, good hygiene, and positivity in combating the spread of COVID-19. They were founded by a group of anonymous gamers and medical professionals, most of whom work in or adjacent to the esports industry. You can join them by signing the pledge at www.gamersvscovid19.com!

Lots of parts of the internet thrive on misinformation—how does this initiative strive to combat that?

Our resources are heavily researched, and we rely on citations from institutions such as the US FDA, US CDC, and the WHO. Each of these is referenced on our page, so you don’t need to take our word for it. We also have contributing medical professionals who help to fact check our distributions, but that doesn’t mean we’re giving medical advice. 

Of course, when it comes to questions about viruses and disease, we always encourage anybody to go directly to a vetted source of information like those we’ve already mentioned.

Besides gaming, what are other ways to practice social distancing?

Social distancing is just the act of removing yourself from public spaces as often as possible. For many of us, that means replacing public activities with online gaming, but for you, it might mean reading, playing music, baking, painting, coding, or whatever you love to do from the comfort of your home. We started this movement in part to remind everybody that social distancing doesn’t mean social isolation: we’re all in this together, even when we’re apart.

What are other ways we can contribute if we still have to go to work?

You can still live by our pledge and help save the world if you go to work! Not everybody has the luxury of being able to totally isolate themselves. Some people have to go to jobs, while others may need to care for relatives or go out for other necessities. Social distancing is the active decision to restrict your time in public spaces to the minimum required amount, which is going to vary from person to person. 

What’s important is that you spend every minute you can at home and that you stay home if you’ve felt sick or been in close contact with somebody who has a confirmed case of coronavirus. Even if you feel healthy, give others a gap of at least six feet whenever possible and don’t touch other people physically. Wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water frequently (especially when exiting or entering a public space), and never touch your face, eyes or mouth with unwashed hands. You can also help amplify the message by not meeting friends in public, sharing the pledge, and shifting in-person meetups to online activities instead.

How do you build a community through gaming? 

Contrary to old stereotypes, gamers are inherently social. Building a community around an important issue like COVID-19 is just a matter of reaching out and getting help from big amplifiers. Once this message is in front of people, we’ve found gamers eager to join and help. It’s been truly uplifting in a challenging time.

The gaming space is supremely lucky to have so many amazing influencers who care deeply about their fans and broader communities. This is an international epidemic, and it’s going to take international cooperation and acts of courage to overcome it. We will do whatever it takes for as long as it takes, and every gamer from the biggest pro to the average joe is making an impact by consciously deciding to sign the pledge and change their lifestyles until COVID-19 is controlled.