Russian mobile developer Pixonic put a staff member into one of its games as downloadable content in an effort to pay for a prosthetic arm.
In 2019 Andrey Kvasov was working at Pixonic in an IT support role (thanks, VGC), and in November of that year, Kvasov was in an accident whilst on holiday in the Dominican Republic. He lost his left arm, fingers on his other hand, and an ear in the accident.
Kvasov shared details of the incident, and how Pixonic worked to get him a prosthetic arm, in a pikabu post (translated from Russian by VGC). After four months he was back at work, he said: “Ever since I was a child, I dreamed of becoming a character in a computer game.
“So when, on my first day in the office after the accident, my colleague Karina came up to me and said: “Listen, Andrey, don’t you want to be a pilot? We can rethink your story and somehow put it into the game?” I didn’t even consider refusing.”
Kvasov was then added into the mobile game War Robots as a pilot in the Summer of last year, and whilst details of their accident weren’t shared with players initially, the character has a robotic arm and a backstory reflecting Kvasov’s own.
“In the story, I am a veteran of the DSC faction who went through many battles, in one of the battles I covered a friend and almost died. I was rescued by my comrades but lost an arm. Despite this, I kept a positive attitude and was brought back into action after rehabilitation and the creation of special armour.
“I thought it was an inspiring re-imagining of a tragic story. My character teaches players to keep their spirits up no matter what,” Kvasov wrote.
Little did Kvasov or players who paid for the character in the mobile game’s battle pass know, but the fund went towards a real prosthetic arm for Kvasov, and after a certain amount was raised he, and the players, were told about it. The character model was then changed to reflect Kvasov’s new prosthetic.
It’s “a childhood dream come true,” said Kvasov, “although I never thought it would come true in this way and after events like this.”
In other news, the wife of the late Stewart Gilray, founder of British studio Just Add Water, has urged others to get the COVID-19 vaccine.
