Game studios are slashing the prices of some of the best PC games out there to fundraise for organisations responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. Paradox Interactive, the publisher behind Cities: Skylines, Stellaris, and Imperator: Rome, has launched a ‘COVID-19 Fundraiser’ sale on Steam and Humble Bundle’s offering a ‘Conquer COVID-19’ collection with big discounts on some great titles.
Paradox’s sale includes some of the biggest and best strategy games, survival games, RPG games, and more from its roster. Pillars of Eternity is currently 40% off, for example, while Tyranny and Age of Wonders: Planetfall are both half-price. Several of the publisher’s titles are seeing even greater discounts, too: Surviving Mars is now 66% off its regular price, while Shadowrun: Dragonfall Director’s Cut, Shadowrun Returns, Shadowrun: Hong Kong Extended Edition, and Knights of Pen and Paper 2 are discounted by 75%.
Cities: Skylines is an eye watering 80% off its regular price, so if you’re yet to try the city builder, now might be just the right time. Sale proceeds from the games are being donated to the World Health Organisation and the United Nations Foundation.
Humble Bundle’s Conquer COVID-19 collection features “$1,071 worth of awesome stuff”, including Undertale, Totally Accurate Battle Simulator, Hollow Knight, Darksiders II Deathinitive Edition, Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons, Europa Universalis IV, Sniper Elite 3, and plenty, plenty more.
Want to play games and help the relief efforts against the COVID-19 virus?
Until 7p.m. CEST of April 3rd the proceeds from a number of Paradox games on Steam will go to the COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund for the WHO!
Get our games and contribute here: https://t.co/eISwu27Cg0 pic.twitter.com/4ieERnVGzq
— Paradox Interactive (@PdxInteractive) March 31, 2020
All you have to do is pay £25.50 / $30 or more to unlock it, and 100% of this goes to charity, the store page advises. Sweet.
Thank you Humble community for your generous support! ❤️ In less than 8 hours, the Humble Conquer #COVID19 Bundle has already raised over $1 million for @DirectRelief, @RESCUEorg, @MSF_USA, and @PIH. https://t.co/78bCQWbqAO pic.twitter.com/1GRsOCVLUt
— Humble Bundle (@humble) April 1, 2020
You can find Paradox’s Steam COVID-19 fundraiser here; it runs from now until April 3 at 18:00 BST / 13:00 ET / 10:00 PT. Humble Bundle’s new collection can be found here, meanwhile, and runs for another six days. There’s a handy timer on the site’s page if you’re keen to see how long you’ve got left to snag the deal. There’s only a limited availability, so be quick if you’d like to grab it.
The WHO has information and guidance on the COVID-19 virus on its website, which you can find here, as well as advice for the public on how to protect yourself against it.