Seattle Children’s Introduces the First of it’s Kind Minecraft World for Kids in the Hospital

Were you watching the virtual Seattle Extra Life Game On event in 2021 when Dr. Henry Ou shared his amazing Seattle Children’s Minecraft build? Well, folks at Xbox took notice and what we haven’t been able to share until now is that Dr Ou’s work kicked off a 3-year long collaboration to create an immersive therapeutic gaming experience only possible at Seattle Children’s. Thanks to Xbox, Mojang Studios and Hive Games, patients now have a one-of-a-kind opportunity to explore the hospital through the virtual world of Minecraft.

Seattle Children’s, the first pediatric hospital to have their hospital recreated in Minecraft, introduced the Seattle Children’s Minecraft Server to its patients on Friday, August 2 enabling them to connect and play together in a safe and monitored environment, even if they can’t leave their room.

“We know that for many kids, Minecraft is more than just a game,” said Ryan Cooper, Head of Minecraft Game Experience at Mojang Studios. “Our teams have been incredibly dedicated to crafting this unique world for the patients at Seattle Children’s and we hope the game continues to inspire their imagination and creativity through the power of play.”

Read more about this amazing partnership and watch the launch event live stream recording.

We want to thank Xbox, Mojang Studios and Hive Games for their partnership and support, and recognize none of this would be possible without Dr. Ou’s imagination and dedication of more than 500 hours creating Seattle Children’s on Minecraft.

You can personally impact kids being treated at our hospital by registering for Extra Life and fundraising for Seattle Children’s. There are many resources at extra-life.org to help you embark on your fundraising quest. You can also connect with the Seattle Extra Life community on Instagram, X, Twitch, and Discord.

Whether you’re into board games or RPGs, console or computer games, cosplay or creating – YOU can be a hero for kids by fundraising through Extra Life!