In a bizarre publicity twist, gaming giant Blizzard Entertainment is hosting a community-wide blood drive, aiming to collect 666 quarts of blood by next month. The catch? The grand prize in this endeavour is a Diablo 4 gaming PC that has been "infused with real human blood". This unique – and somewhat unsettling – stunt would require approximately 1,332 players to donate the standard one-pint of blood, provided multiple entries are not permitted.
Season 2 for Diablo 4 has started, and with a thematic focus on vampires, Blizzard has decided to appeal to players' generosity – not only asking for their time and monetary contributions, but also their actual blood. The slightly morbid yet charitable event dubbed "Blood Harvest," is set to run until November 20.
Players over 18 living in the US are eligible to donate blood at any registered blood bank, obtaining proof of their donation. Submitting this proof online will contribute to filling an in-game blood fountain. At various milestones, this macabre fountain will deliver rewards, with all rewards being distributed on November 22.
Upon reaching 33% of the target, players will be rewarded with a collection of "Bloodpetal" weapon cosmetics. At 66%, the Diablo 4 community will receive the Loch Raeth Maor Barbarian armor set. And with the fountain brimming at 100%, the gaming corporation will present the Vermillion Eye Piebald mount, with an opportunity to enter a US-only sweepstakes for the grand prize; a gaming PC infused with human blood.
The specifics provided in Blizzard's press release focus on the PC's liquid-cooling system being the carrier for the human blood – though the volume of actual blood is unlikely to be significant. Likely a mixture of red dye, traditional coolant, blood or plasma is used, to ensure the device adheres to sanitary standards. The remarkable PC features an Intel Core i9 CPU, a Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090 GPU, 64GB of DDR5 RAM, and a 3TB SSD in a Quantum Vector GPU water block system sporting red-and-black color theme.
In addition to being a unique PR event, it should be acknowledged that this campaign encourages an act that can genuinely save lives. Donating blood is beneficial to society, so anything that encourages donations could be seen as advantageous, despite the eccentric approach.
Blizzard's history with unconventional PR stunts, including engaging Megan Fox in honoring the hardcore players of Diablo 4, sets a precedent for such out-of-the-box events. Unsure about Diablo 4? Now might be the time to try. You can enjoy the first ten hours for free on Xbox this weekend. Here are some Diablo 4 tips to help you make the most of your time in Sanctuary.
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