14 DAY TRIAL // Epic Games and Microsoft have announced that the Gears of War fans will decide if the third Carmine character will die in the third installment in the series. It is worth remembering that in both Gears of War and Gears of War 2, supporting characters Anthony and Ben Carmine have perished at the hands of the Locust in the early chapters of each title's narrative. This time around things may change depending on the votes of the audience.
What is even better is that all proceedings coming from this campaign will be donated to the Child's Play Charity. All one has to do to vote for the death or survival of Clayton Carmine is buy one of two special avatar t-shirts from the Xbox Live Marketplace. One shirt reads “Save Carmine” and the other reads “Carmine Must Die.” Obviously, purchasing a “Save Carmine” counts as a vote for Carmine's life, while getting a “Carmine Must Die” version will count as a vote against Carmine.
It is worth to know that Child’s Play is a community-based games industry charity that is involved various activities meant to improve the lives and health of children around the world. Through their network of more than 60 hospitals and through the generosity of their quite impressive community of donors, Child’s Play raises millions of dollars each year to donate games, consoles, toys and many other resources to children plagued by various illnesses.
This Public Relations move serves as some very effective and novel kind of promotion for the upcoming Gears of War 3 title. It ensures brand recognition for Epic's third person shooter, while scoring good reputation between consumers. Furthermore, it is nice to see Epic Games involving their fans in the development of its releases. Gears of War 3 will be launched on the 5th of April 2011 exclusively for the Xbox 360.