THE INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE OF THE RED CROSS
PLAY BY THE RULES
We partnered with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to show the world: How you play FPS can make a difference on battlefields IRL.
The Geneva Conventions were adopted more than 70 years ago to protect the humanitarian rights of individuals in conflict zones around the world. But today, awareness of the Rules of War lags for young people. The ICRC needed to drive awareness and educate younger audiences—especially future soldiers.
PLAY BY THE RULES TWITCH LIVESTREAM EVENT
We tapped the best FPS gamers, playing the top FPS titles. And invited a member of the International Red Cross to MC and guide the gamers. They had a whole new set of rules to play by and figured it out LIVE on Twitch.
MEET OUR GAMERS
@DanucD (Dana Dima)
1.5M Followers | Playing PubG Battlegrounds
“As someone who can relate a lot to this cause and as someone who's being affected directly or indirectly by the past and present wars around me, I really wish countries and armies play by the rules. It's heartbreaking what is happening in today's world, and I hope we can all make a positive change to help and protect the innocent.”
@Jukeyz (liam hunt)
215K Followers | playing call of duty: warzone
“I enjoyed playing by the rules and I got really into it that much that after the stream with the ICRC I then started up my own stream and carried on implementing it into my gameplay hoping I could complete the challenge and spread the word of the Rules of War at the same time.”
@KingGeorge (George Kassa)
1M Followers | Playing Rainbow 6 Siege
“I had a great time working with the ICRC to Play by the Rules of War. It was very difficult to change up my gameplay to incorporate the rules. It was much easier to learn and remember playing a video game than reading a document or watching a video. It taught me valuable lessons about the ICRC mission, and how participants in war can act appropriately. War is obviously a terrible thing but unfortunately does take place in our world. It is important to remember that we are all humans, and at the end of the day we need to treat each other with respect and dignity regardless of the circumstances.”
@Gingy (Ashlie Hiatt)
200K Followers | Playing Escape from Tarkov
“It was amazing being a part of the Play by the Rules campaign. It felt good to be part of a fresh idea with regards to content creation whilst at the same time bringing awareness to an important cause. I was proud to be a part of the campaign and very grateful for the opportunity.”
@ZemiE (ALI RAHJOO)
1M Followers | Playing Fortnite
HOW TO PLAY BY THE RULES OF WAR
APPLYING THE RULES OF WAR TO GAMING
When an enemy is down and can’t respond, you can’t keep shooting at them.
Rule of War: Prisoners of war must be protected from violence, intimidation, and ill treatment.
Bots that don’t fire unprovoked are considered civilians, and you can’t target or harm them.
Rule of War: Civilians cannot be attacked and must be protected.
In any given game map, houses, schools, or hospitals are considered safe zones that you cannot harm. When fighting in these spaces, you must do everything you can to avoid damage.
Rule of War: Civilian infrastructures are protected areas
If you have an unused med kit that works on others, you must give it to those who need it—be they friendly or enemy.
Rule of War: The sick and wounded must be cared for on both sides.
EXTENDING THE CHALLENGE TO GAMERS EVERYWHERE
After the livestream, we invited the whole gaming community to Play by the Rules in special game modes created with the ICRC. These modes have the Rules of War baked into gameplay, guiding players every step of the way.
RESULTS & PRESS
The livestream alone had 143,618 unique viewers—756 times more than ICRC’s current Twitch follower count—who actively engaged with the experience.
In the week following the livestream, we saw articles published across major news, entertainment, and gaming publications like USA Today and Gamespot. Microsite engagement increased from 72 visitors on livestream day to over 8,400 in the days that followed, driving continued interest in the brand and mission.
Finally, through paid media campaigns, the campaign received over 3 million impressions.