Overview

Gamers Outreach Foundation is teaming up with the Intel LANFest series and the student government of Eastern Michigan University to produce Gamers for Giving 2013, a competitive video game tournament / BYOC LAN party to help raise funds and generate awareness for Gamers Outreach initiatives. The event will take place at the Eastern Michigan University Student Center from 10:00 AM Saturday, February 16th to 10:00 PM Sunday, February 17th. Yes, you read that correctly. The entire weekend will be filled with non-stop gaming and eSports competition in the name of charity!

Our goal is to raise $15,000.00 to help support Gamers Outreach initiatives in 2013. All event costs and tournament prize pools are underwritten by our partners, which means your entry fee directly supports Gamers Outreach programs!

If you're unable to attend, fear not! The entire event will be streamed on Twitch.tv thanks to Kona's Korner Productions! We're accepting donations from now until the end of the event in February. If you're able, please consider making a contribution to help support the cause!

Location

Eastern Michigan University Student Center

Grand Ballroom, 2nd Floor

900 Oakwood Street

Ypsilanti, MI USA 48197

Venue website: http://www.emich.edu/studentcenter/

Activities

4 vs 4 Call of Duty Black Ops 2 Tournament $1,500 1st Place Prize / $750 2nd Place Prize Takes place on Saturday, February 16th. Check-in and warm up will begin at 10:00 AM. The tournament will begin at 12:00 PM. Entry Fee: $25 Per Player Xbox 360 Tournament Players will need to bring their own WIRED Xbox 360 controller. Monitors and consoles will be provided. Astro Mixamps will be provided at each station. Headsets are optional and must be provided by players. All attendees must download and sign the Event Waiver. Please bring this to Gamers for Giving. Settings and gametypes can be found on the Tournaments page.



4 vs 4 Halo 4 Tournament $1,500 1st Place Prize / $750 2nd Place Prize Takes place on Sunday, February 17th. Check-in and warm up will begin at 10:00 AM. The tournament will begin at 12:00 PM. Entry Fee: $25 Per Player Xbox 360 Tournament Players will need to bring their own WIRED Xbox 360 controller. Monitors and consoles will be provided. Astro Mixamps will be provided at each station. Headsets are optional and must be provided by players. All attendees must download and sign the Event Waiver. Please bring this to Gamers for Giving. Settings and gametypes can be found on the Tournaments page.



LANFest sponsored by Intel 150 Person BYOC LAN Party Entry Fee: $25 Per Seat Doors open on Saturday, February 16th at 10:00 AM. LAN is open to both PC and console gamers. Attendees will have access to the internet during the event. LAN entry fee includes entrance into ALL PC tournaments & activities (e.g. League of Legends / SC2). All attendees must download and sign the Event Waiver. Please bring this to Gamers for Giving. The LANFest event is a BYOC event (Bring Your Own Computer / Console). Attendees will need to bring the following items to the event... Computer with necessary cables (or video game console) Monitor ( Note: If your monitor is larger than 27 inches you will need to purchase 2 seats.) Headset Ethernet cable (at least 25 feet long - cat5, cat5e, or cat6) Up to date software (Game CDs, Windows CD, Drivers, etc) Sleeping bag / pillow (if you plan on staying at the venue) Money for food & snacks. Each seat in the LAN comes with 2 electrical outlets per person. Do not bring your own power strip to the event, or try in any way to exceed the use of 2 electrical outlets. If you would like to have access to additional outlets, you must buy another seat at the LAN. Failure to abide by this rule will result in immediate removal from the event.



LANFest activities and game servers include... League of Legends Tournament (see below) StarCraft 2 Tournament (see below) Counter Strike Global Offensive Tournament (Onsite / LAN Server – taking place on Sunday. Rules will be announced at the event). Counter Strike Source (Onsite / LAN Server – free play throughout the weekend). Battlefield 3 (This server will be hosted on the internet. Server details to be provided at event). Team Fortress 2 (Onsite / LAN Server – free play throughout the weekend). League of Legends Midnight ARAM Tournament (Tournament will last throughout the night on Saturday / Sunday) Minecraft LAN server (build, build, build). Hardware Benchmarking Contest Case Mod Contest (Most ridiculous looking case wins). Keep in mind, free play activities occur throughout the entire duration of the BYOC LAN! You can discuss what games you'll be playing in the Gamers for Giving LANFest Forums



1 vs 1 StarCraft 2 Tournament $500 1st Place Prize / $250 2nd Place Prize Entry Fee: Event is open to all LANFest BYOC attendees. Players looking to register need only buy a seat at the LAN. Check-in and set up for the StarCraft 2 tournament will begin at 10:00 AM. The tournament will begin at 1:30 PM. Bring your own computer (see LANFest details above) Settings and gametypes can be found on the Tournaments page.



5 vs 5 League of Legends Tournament $1,000 1st Place Prize / $500 2nd Place Prize Entry Fee: Event is open to all LANFest BYOC attendees. Players looking to register need only buy a seat at the LAN. The League of Legends tournament will take place over the course of both Saturday and Sunday at Gamers for Giving. The first half of the tournament will be played on Saturday. The second half will be played on Sunday. Check-in for the League of Legends tournament will begin on Saturday, February 16th at 10:00 AM. The tournament will begin at 1:30 PM. Part two of the tournament will begin on Sunday, February 17th at 1:30 PM. Bring Your Own Computer (see LANFest details) Settings and gametypes can be found on the Tournaments page.



Schedule

Please note, the schedule below is subject to change. Free play activities occur throughout the entire duration of the BYOC LAN. If you are a LAN attendee, you can discuss what games you'll be bringing ahead of time in the Gamers for Giving LANFest Forums.

Saturday, February 16th

10:00 AM - Doors open. LANFest begins. Black Ops 2 Check-in / Warm Up. SC2 Check-In / Warm Up. LoL Check-In / Warm Up.

11:30 AM - Black Ops 2 warm ups end.

11:45 AM - Opening Ceremony. Stream goes LIVE.

12:00 PM - Call of Duty Black Ops 2 Tournament begins.

1:30 PM - StarCraft 2 Tournament begins. LoL Tournament begins.

~10:00 PM - Call of Duty Black Ops 2 Tournament ends. LANFest continues!

10:00 PM to 8:00 AM Sunday, February 17th - LANFest activities.

Sunday, February 17th

10:00 AM - Halo 4 Check-in / Warm Up. League of Legends check-in.

11:30 AM - Halo 4 Warm Ups end

11:45 AM - Halo 4 Opening Ceremony

12:00 PM - Halo 4 Tournament Begins

1:30 PM - League of Legends tournament part 2 begins

~10:00 PM - Halo 4 tournament ends. League of Legends tournament ends. Gamers for Giving closing ceremony.

Travel / Hotel / Food

For those flying in from out of state, the closest airport to Gamers for Giving is Detroit Metro (airport code: DTW).

The BYOC LAN will run throughout the entire course of the weekend. Because the event lasts throughout the night, LANFest attendees are welcome to stay at the venue.

If roughing the weekend with a sleeping bag or inflatable mattress doesn't sound like your cup of tea, the Ann Arbor Marriott Ypsilanti Hotel has rooms available for an advanced purchase rate of $114.00 during the night of February 16th. The hotel is in close proximity to the venue (5 to 10 minute drive), and is conveniently located a half mile from I-94.

Hotel website: Ann Arbor Marriott Ypsilanti at Eagle Crest

The EMU Student Center has a number of restaurants on the 1st floor, directly below Gamers for Giving. A list of vendors and their availability is as follows...

Wendy's | Saturday: 11 AM - 5 PM | Sunday: 11 AM - 8 PM

Starbucks | Saturday: 9 AM - 9 PM | Sunday: 12 PM - 11 PM

Lobby Shop | Saturday: 8 AM - 10 PM | Sunday: 12 PM - 10 PM

Live Stream

Gamers for Giving 2013 will be streamed live on Twitch.tv thanks to Kona's Korner Productions! The stream will feature live commentary, gameplay, and interviews with special guests and personalities from within the video game industry. During the stream, Gamers Outreach will be accepting donations to raise funds to support initiatives in 2013.

The stream will be broadcast at http://www.twitch.tv/lanfest

Special Guests

Each year, Gamers Outreach invites competitive gamers and personalities from within the video game industry to attend our annual fundraising event. Here's a list of who's who at this year's event!





Mike "hastr0" Rufail

Mike “hastr0” Rufail is a former professional competitive Call of Duty player who, in recent years, has become a type of eSports mogul within the video game industry. Hastr0 played a key role in the development of Call of Duty Black Ops 2, working directly with David Vonderhaar on many of the game’s new competitive features.

Hastr0 has since also launched Eon Interactive, a marketing firm and competitive gaming sponsorship organization that is propelling the growth of eSports, and working to secure endorsements for players excelling in today’s competitive gaming space.

As if his hands weren’t already full enough, hastr0 has made substantial efforts to make charity work an integral part of his professional career. His involvement with Gamers Outreach spans back to 2010, when he first attended Gamers for Giving and supported the construction of a GO Kart for the Dallas VA Medical Center.

Hastr0 will be assisting with commentary during the Gamers for Giving Black Ops 2 tournament, and will be catching casual matches with attendees throughout the course of the weekend during LANFest.



David "Walshy" Walsh

Known within the competitive Halo community as “Walshy,” David Walsh is a man who’s identity has become synonymous with Halo. As a pioneer of eSports, Walshy is a three time Major League Gaming National Champion, and boasts a resume inked with victories across multiple tournaments from around the world. But his desire to contribute to the progression of the video game industry extends outside the edges of his TV screen. He is currently working as a Chapter President within the Entertainment Consumers Association, and serves on the Board of Directors for Gamers Outreach Foundation.

Walshy has since retired from the competitive circuit, and has begun focusing his efforts on gameplay commentary and content production through outlets such as Twitch.tv and YouTube. Most recently, Walshy was able to raise over $3,800 to support Gamers Outreach efforts, and place a GO Kart in the Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital of Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Walshy will be onsite during the weekend of Gamers for Giving 2013, commentating the happenings of this year’s Halo 4 tournament, and playing games with attendees in the BYOC LAN.



Frank "u4iX" Bowen

u4iX is perhaps best known as one of the leading personalities for professional Halo commentary in the new era of the competitive title's lifespan. u4iX first began his career as a content creator, producing videos critiquing the Halo series, as well as developing in-depth strategy guides for the Shadowrun community. After attending a few events and working a VoD position for MLG, he quickly climbed the internal ranks of competitive gaming and became a Halo: Reach caster for the 2011 MLG Orlando Championships and the 2011 MLG National Championships in Providence. After this, he backed off the casting scene to work the fighting game graphics for MLG, but returned in full force to cast the Halo 4 pre-release tournament at the 2012 MLG Fall Championships in Dallas. u4iX continues to post videos to his personal YouTube channel and stream, and serves as one of the driving personalities at the HaloCouncil.com.

Alex "Axeltoss" Rodriguez

Axeltoss is a professional StarCraft 2 commentator for Major League Gaming, and in September of 2012, moved to New York City to pursue a full time job within the organization. His resume as a major event's caster and organizer spans back to 2011, when his notoriety as an on-air personality quickly escalated after casting events such as the North American Star League Seasons, the Team Liquid Open Series, and MLG Providence. In 2012, he played a major role in organizing and launching the Lone Star Clash, an event bringing together multiple universities and professional gamers to compete in a live streamed StarCraft 2 tournament. Additional casts include the World Cyber Games USA Qualifiers and National Finals event in 2012, and the Battle.net World Championship Series Global Finals.

Axeltoss will be making the trip from New York to join Gamers Outreach supporters at Gamers for Giving 2013, and will be assisting with stream activities throughout the weekend.

Kaitlin "Strwbryshrtkate" Ouillette

Self-identifying as a gamer since the age of 4, Kaitlin Ouillette is an up and coming host / personality within the competitive video game scene. In 2012, she was chosen from amongst a field of nominees as Maxim's Gamer Girl of the year, and has since also become a spokesmodel for Virgin Gaming. She can been seen at various events throughout the industry, and runs a weekly blog for both Maxim and Virgin Gaming, which can be found here. Kaitlin will be supporting Gamers for Giving as one of our special guests and stream commentators throughout the course of the weekend!