King, the interactive entertainment company for mobile and the makers of Candy Crush Saga, has launched a four-week charity gaming campaign in Pet Rescue Saga in a bid to support Battersea – with the UK public invited to take part for free.

During the four week campaign, players who install and play Pet Rescue Saga for free can take part in in-game weekly challenges, each themed on a different part of Battersea’s work including training and behaviour week, happy dog week, happy cat week and rehoming week.

Each week has its own target and players are tasked with collecting cookies that will be added to the score meter in a bid to reach the set target. Over the course of the campaign, the community’s success in hitting those targets unlocks real money donations from King that will go directly to Battersea, to help real-life animals off the back of a year when many believe their pets have saved them.

A new survey from King revealed that following a difficult 12 months, which saw millions living with social restrictions and new lockdowns across the UK, it was our passions that kept many people staying positive – many Brits turned to mobile gaming and pets to help combat monotony and feelings of isolation in their day to day lives during 2020.

A nationally representative sample of over 2,000 people across the UK was asked what ‘rescued’ them from feelings of isolation, anxiety and poor mental health in 2020, with 2 in 3 (65%) of British pet owners saying owning a pet helped their mental health during the lockdown. 65% also said having a pet helped them not feel as isolated during 2020 and more than half (51%) of British pet owners said their pet ‘saved’ them in 2020.

In addition to spending time with their pets, further King research revealed the popularity of mobile games soared, with over a third of 25-34 years olds saying they played mobile games to destress and for mindfulness. Playing mobile games came second only to go for a walk (45%) and ranked above exercise (37%), reading (33%) and having a bath (30%) as a go-to mindfulness tactic in this age group.

Lina McAneney, Head of Pet Rescue Saga at King, said: “We are thrilled to be able to support Battersea and the amazing work they do with this first-of-its-kind in-game takeover in Pet Rescue Saga. We know Pet Rescue Saga has a wide and loyal fanbase who love real-life animals, and we hope both seasoned and new players get behind the cause and help unlock important donations for Battersea.”

Rob Young, Head of Operations at Battersea, said: “We’re excited to be working with King. Every penny donated to Battersea as a result of this partnership will go directly toward the care of our animals and others across the UK and beyond – so we hope Pet Rescue Saga’s loyal players will enjoy this opportunity to game for good and help real-life dogs and cats in need.”

Playing Pet Rescue Saga from January 11th, 2021 is a unique opportunity to make gameplay count by unlocking important donations that will help Battersea look after and rehome the thousands of animals that come through their doors each year.