via Matt Della Porta, Ph.D. for YouBeauty: "In this edition of Cloud Nine, I want to talk about A Better World, a Facebook game that stands out from all of the rest. Indeed, this is no ordinary game; when you play, your actions in the game make a life-saving difference in the real world.

Set in the context of a colorful virtual world with nearly 100,000 players, A Better World is a fun and lighthearted way to practice happiness strategies, including expressing gratitude and doing acts of kindness. Sounds good, right? Well, there's more. Just by playing and having fun you are helping to save lives. In this game, everybody wins!"  Read the Full Article Here.


Akunda Given, Uganda

Akunda Given, Uganda

Quote startThis holiday season you can give thanks through a Facebook game and help save lives.Quote end

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (PRWEB) November 20, 2012

Thanksgiving is a time for people to say thanks for their blessings and think about the things for which they are grateful. This holiday season you can give thanks through a Facebook game and help save lives.

A Better World is a game on Facebook where players are rewarded for doing good deeds in the real and virtual worlds. The game is close to reaching 6,000,000 good deeds done by its players, and is challenging them to reach the goal by year’s end. If players reach 6,000,000 by December 31st, ToonUps will donate funds to CURE International to save the lives of these three babies stricken with hydrocephalus in the developing world: Maureen Ageno, Sylas Opio, and Sharon Apio.

Giving thanks is a core theme of A Better World and sharing gratitude is one of the most popular features in the game. The top five things that BetterWorldians are thankful for are “Family, Love, Happiness, Friends, and their Pets” -- a heartwarming reminder of how people embrace this season of goodwill, even in Facebook games.

“Both traditional wisdom and contemporary science show that gratitude is a key virtue”, says Gregory R. Hansell, Vice President of Product Development at ToonUps. “Positive Psychologists are in agreement that giving thanks is central to a positive outlook, and ancient philosophers believed that being thankful is at the core of a good and happy life.”

To join the game, players simply sign up for A Better World on Facebook, create a character and start exploring. Many of the key areas in the game, including the Gratitude Grotto, the Positive Post, and the Department of Do Good provide opportunities to post “do-good” activities that contribute to the 6 million challenge. Examples could be donating groceries to a shelter for those affected by Hurricane Sandy, sending a personal get well wish from A Better World’s Positive Post directly to a child in a CURE hospital, or simply posting expressions of gratitude. All good deeds earn in-game points for the player as well as counting toward the goal of 6 million and the donation to CURE.org.

"The continued support of ToonUps and the A Better World community have been invaluable to CURE", said Joel Worrall, VP of Cure.org. "The financial contributions made possible by A Better World players have changed the lives of over a dozen children, and the thousands of get well message sent from within the game have brightened the day of hundreds of patients and aided in the healing process in our hospitals each day. We are extremely grateful for their partnership and support."

ToonUps is a digital entertainment company that has been creating uplifting games and apps for over ten years. Their social game, A Better World, creates a fun environment that inspires players to help others, become better people, and make the world a better place. The game is creating a powerful legion of do-gooders known as BetterWorldians. And the secret is spreading.

CURE International heals the sick and proclaims the kingdom of God. It is the largest provider of reconstructive surgery to disabled children in the emerging world. Since opening the doors of its first surgical teaching hospital in Kijabe, Kenya in 1998, CURE's focus on bringing healing to developing nations has resulted in more than 1.9 million patient visits and over 138,000 surgeries to correct physically disabling conditions. CURE has also trained more than 6,100 medical professionals raising the standard of care in the countries where it operates.

Websites
A Better World: http://bit.ly/ABW6Million
ToonUps: http://bit.ly/ToonUpsCURE
CURE: http://bit.ly/CUREorgkids

Hello BetterWorldians!

Today, we kick off a new Reach For The Stars Community Goal! We're partnering up with our friends at CURE International to help save the lives of three kids! All you need to do is keep up the do-good spirit by doing good deeds in A Better World to help us reach our goal of 6 Million Good Deeds by January 1st! Play now! http://bit.ly/HelpSave3Kids 

You can help out by using the Gratitude Grotto, Positive Post, Heart Cart, Dept of Do-Good, Sanctuary of Hope, or Sanctuary of Prayer to help us work towards our goal and save lives.

 

SHARE or COMMENT and Play now! http://bit.ly/HelpSave3Kids

 

Wendy Lazarus, Founder and Co-President, The Children’s Partnership, writes in the Huffington Post about her organization's recent report: Can Game Companies Help America's Children? The Case for Engagement & VirtuallyGood4Kids™. The report discusses how gaming companies can help children in America and sites ToonUps partnership with CURE.org as a creative twist on charitable endeavors.

Read the Huffington Post article here

Read The Children's Partnership Report here.

       

PHILADELPHIA, PA--(Marketwire - Sep 5, 2012) -  ToonUps, cause gaming™ pioneer and creator of A Better World game on Facebook, today announced they are bringing prayer to social gaming with their Sanctuary of Prayer. This new feature, open to people of all spiritual traditions, adds yet another dimension to A Better World's mission to be a place "Where All Good Deeds Are Rewarded and Real World Causes Are Supported." Since the game's launch last year, more than 5 million good deeds, expressions of gratitude, and hopes and dreams have been collectively shared by players of the game.

In the Sanctuary of Prayer, players create prayer groups that can be joined by friends and other community members. The players who wish to offer support say actual prayers, report them in the game, and get in-game rewards for their participation. As players report more and more prayers, their rewards get bigger and their community gets stronger.

"The new feature harnesses the power of prayer, encourages cooperation and kindness among the game's online community, and gives an extra dose of hope to those with real-life wants and needs," said MarySue Hansell, President and COO of ToonUps.

A Better World is a free, uplifting game on Facebook that is all about being positive and encouraging kindness to others. Like other Facebook games, you create your character and home, care for a pet, and grow a garden, but in A Better World players progress by doing kind things for others inside and outside the game. Features include the Gratitude Grotto, the Positive Post, and the Department of Do-Good. Players can share their good deeds, notes of encouragement, get-well wishes, and gifts with the Facebook community. The Sanctuary of Prayer gives players one more outlet to express themselves, support others, and receive fun in-game rewards for doing so.

"Games, with their deeply immersive and interactive nature, can enhance the power of prayer for an online community," said Gregory R. Hansell, VP of Product Development.

ToonUps is a digital entertainment company that has been creating uplifting games and apps for over ten years. Their social game, A Better World, creates a fun environment that inspires players to help others, become better people, and make the world a better place. The game is creating a powerful legion of do-gooders known as BetterWorldians. And the secret is spreading.

ToonUps is headquartered in Wayne, PA.

A Better World Game Photoshttp://bit.ly/SopPhotos

Tweet this: ToonUps Brings Prayer to Social Gaming
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Websites
A Better World Game: http://bit.ly/ABWPrayer

A Dream for A Better World YouTube Video: http://bit.ly/ADreamABW

ToonUps: http://bit.ly/ToonUpsWebsite

Contacts

Jenna McCullough
ToonUps
610-902-0080 x117