Itch.io raises more than $6 million for Ukraine with its charity bundle

Itch.io is home to many an indie game, and nearly a thousand of them joined forces for a charity bundle. Wrapping up today, March 18, the Bundle for Ukraine contained a whopping 998 games for a minimum donation of $10. After running for about 10 days, the bundle amassed just over $6 million for the people of Ukraine in the wake of Russia’s invasion of their country.

Developer Necrosoft Games organized the charity drive, and studio director Brandon Sheffield took to Twitter to make the announcement. “The final number [is] over $6.3 million,” Sheffield proclaimed. This money will be split between two charities — International Medical Corps and Voices of Children — but it’s all going to the Ukrainian citizens. Sheffield ends the roundup by wishing for peace in the region.

Many folks in the games industry have answered the call to support Ukraine in the wake of the invasion, and the list goes up the ladder from the indies found on Itch.io. EA, one of the largest publishers in the world, has begun removing Russian teams from FIFA 22 and other sports games, and it also barred esports competitors from Russia and Belarus from participating in events. Meanwhile, both The Pokémon Company and Sony made sizable donations to additional charities in support of Ukraine.