GAMERS pulled an all-nighter to raise thousands of pounds for a West Oxfordshire charity that enhances the quality of life of people with disabilities.

Teams from Oxfordshire and beyond gamed continuously for 24 hours as part of GameBlast19, which aimed to raise £100,000 for Charlbury-based charity SpecialEffect.

Groups from across the county, plus some from America and Australia, fired up their consoles last weekend in aid of the organisation, which helps people with disabilities benefit from video games.

Among those were 16 players at Finstock Village Hall, a matter of miles from Charlbury, who have so far raised more than £2,300 thanks to their 24-hour marathon.

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They received several visitors during the challenge, including Dr Mick Donegan, founder and CEO of SpecialEffect.

This gave the group a much-needed lift, although Chris Owen, a member of the team and manager of GAME's Witney store, admitted they were grateful when the marathon finished.

He said: "When it got to 5am the last few hours went very slowly.

"Everyone was coming down off the coffee and energy drinks and didn't want to top up because they'd be going to bed soon.

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"It was really good to speak to Dr Mick and hear about how many community-based fundraisers are happening, rather than just organised by the big companies.

"It's very much gamers doing their own thing and this was the best year ever for that."

GameBlast has been likened to a ‘Children in Need’ for gamers, and is backed by big names in the industry including GAME, SEGA and Twitch.

The Finstock group gamed from 9am on Sunday until 9am on Monday, playing established favourites like FIFA, alongside more niche titles.

Three people live-streamed the challenge online, helping boost the fundraising total and get closer to last year's record of £3,200.

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It was the third year a group from Finstock had taken on the challenge and GameBlast's sixth year overall.

Players from Bicester, Oxford and Didcot were among those taking part beyond West Oxfordshire, while Royal Cars in Cowley held gaming events across the weekend.

Tom Donegan, the charity’s events organiser, said: “Playing for 24 hours is a big challenge, but we asked people to attempt it to help the thousands of people who, because of a disability, can only sit and watch other people have all the fun with family and friends.

“GameBlast is an opportunity for people to do what they love best and level the playing field for people with disabilities at the same time.”