It’s surprisingly easy to start getting down on humanity as a whole during trying times of crisis; the true colors of humanity begin flying almost immediately, and twenty-four hour news stations are eager to fill up those time slots. So we get to see the worst that humanity has to offer, while being wildly uncertain of the future ourselves. As Mr. Rogers stated, however, during times of crisis we should look to those helping.
Techland is the most recent studio to attempt to alleviate the obscene levels of stress that medical facilities around the world are experiencing as they attempt to fight off the most recent pandemic that has covered the globe like a bushfire, bringing waves of death and fear as it reverberates beyond national borders.
Until April 7th all purchases of the Dying Light – Vintage Gunslinger Bundle will be donated to support COVID-19 relief efforts; a $2 bundle that includes a shotgun, revolver, skinning knife, gold-plated buggy, and a pretty dashing skin for our protagonist of Dying Light Kyle Crane.
It’s a nice way to step forth into the infected streets in style, even if the skin doesn’t necessarily coincide with the over-the-top parkour moves that you’ll be using to stay safe in the streets of Harran. You’ll even get a shiny sheriff’s badge to pin onto your lapel, letting the infected hordes know that you are the closest thing to the law that they’ll experience for the rest of their generally miserable lives.
If you opted to skip Rockstar’s recent Red Dead Redemption 2, it’s a nice journey into roleplay; every time you loot a container, matter something about needing faith and it’s as close as you’d like to a one-to-one comparison.
Techland has not announced which charity the proceeds will be going to, perhaps a red flag to some as the number of charities that are eager to help are dwarfed by the charities looking to profit from everyone’s misery, and sorting through those two separate types can be a Herculean task of itself. Reaching out directly on Twitter in regards to which charity Techland is supporting has, thus far, yielded no response; this will be updated if that situation changes.
All in all, it’s a fantastic effort to help support the world in its time of need, and it’s difficult to argue that the world has more needs at this moment than it has in the past couple of decades. As always, however, it’s important to look for those helping; it’ll keep you sane.