Though the beginning of April is usually associated with pranks and jokes, the games press is coming together early next month for a much more serious project. More than 25 media outlets, including GameSpot, will collaborate on a 60-minute video project called Gamers Heart Japan. The special will premiere on a variety of outlets on April 3 and will both highlight the rich history of game development in Japan and raise awareness for the Red Cross relief effort in the earthquake-, tsunami-, and nuclear-disaster-stricken nation.

　　The video will feature many leading game journalists, as well as a host of developers. The latter group will include Jade Raymond (Ubisoft Toronto), Dr. Greg Zeschuk (BioWare), Dr. Ray Muzyka (BioWare), Tim Schafer (Double Fine), Cliff Bleszinski (Epic Games), Ted Price (Insomniac Games), Siobhan Reddy (Media Molecule), Todd Howard (Bethesda), Peter Molyneux (Lionhead), Alex Rigopulos (Harmonix), Jenova Chen (thatgamecompany), Evan Wells (Naughty Dog), Ed Boon (Netherrealm), Sid Meier (Firaxis), and more.

　　Gamers really do love Japan.

　　A full list of participating media outlets is below. For more information on scheduling or to donate to the Red Cross' relief fund for Japan, visit the official GamersHeartJapan.com website.

　　G4 (US & Canada)

　　SCI FI Australia

　　SPACE (Canada)

　　Musique Plus (Canada)

　　Gametrailers.com

　　IGN.com

　　Gamespot.com

　　GameInformer.com

　　Joystiq.com

　　Kotaku.com

　　Destructoid.com

　　Elecplay.com

　　G4tv.com

　　Reviewsontherun.com

　　MTV.com

　　TheEscapist.com

　　Wired.com

　　Games.Yahoo.com

　　Wired.com/gaming/

　　TheECA.com

　　TotallyRadShow.com

　　Shacknews.com

　　EGMNow.com

　　USAToday.com (GameHunters)

　　Bitmob.com

　　TheTorontoSun.com

　　UGO.com

　　Metacafe.com

　　Youtube.com

　　Facebook.com