The 10th annual Desert Bus for Hope charity game marathon is underway

The Desert Bus for Hope video game charity marathon kicked off its tenth annual campaign this past weekend and has already raised nearly $158,000 for Child’s Play. The event doesn’t have a set end date. Instead, volunteers will keep streaming as long as total donations reach a certain hourly milestone.

The charity was named for the Desert Bus mini-game in the unreleased Sega CD game Penn & Teller’s Smoke and Mirrors, which the Desert Bus for Hope participants will be playing for the entire duration of the charity event.

The minigame requires players to drive a bus for eight actual hours on the highway between Tucson and Las Vegas. Volunteers fill the time while playing with on-stream interviews, contests, auctions, and the occasional spontaneous dance party.

During last year’s event, the charity raised $684,000 and played for 159 hours. Since its first event in 2007, Desert Bus for Hope has become the longest running internet-based fundraiser and has raised over $3.1 million dollars.