“Game. Grow. And Touch Grass.” No, really—that’s in the page name for SeedSaga, a new nature campaign that wants Guild Wars 2 players to help their worlds inside and out. This project encourages players (unfortunately only in the United Kingdom, at the moment) to request a packet of exclusive seeds similar to those found in the hit MMORPG in order to make nature a little brighter.
“These packs start your quest to all things botanical and deepens your connection with nature,” the site explains. “And without even knowing it, you’ll be counteracting the effects of climate change.”
The first iteration of SeedSaga features three real-life plants playing as counter-parts to their Guild Wars 2 equivalents. The Blooming Passiflora is invoked by the Passion Flower, a therapeutic American herb with mild sedative effects. Flax is, of course, much like the real-life flax of the Mediterranean region and India, known for being a “superfood” with omega-3 fatty acids, fibers, and antioxidants. Finally, the Crimson Sunflower finds its twin in North American Caret Sunflower, which is seen as nutritious and helpful to both bees and humans, as well as a possible biofuel source.
Each delivery of seeds includes a recyclable sachet with instructions, plus an ability card that can either be kept as a collectible or turned into a soil card. We gotta admit that the dedication to earth-friendliness is admirable.
Wieden+Kennedy London created the Seed Saga campaign, to improve awareness of nature both in- and out-of-game. “Targeting an overlooked audience for environmental campaigns, the ‘Seed Saga’ campaign went where few have dared to tread, attempting to ignite the interest of the gaming community in real-world gardening!”
Given this is titled “Edition 1” of the SeedSaga series, there’s a chance we’ll see other games’ flora featured in the future. (Personally, I’ve recently doubled down on fin-ishing fishing in Final Fantasy 14 lately. Ha.)
Any other gardeners out there?
UPDATE: February 22, 2024 : We have corrected our piece to include the name of the agency responsible for the Seed Saga campaign: Wieden + Kennedy London.
