Perfect World Entertainment and Cryptic Studios, in conjunction with Wizards of the Coast, on Tuesday announced that Neverwinter and Star Trek Online, under license from ViacomCBS Consumer Products, will team up in support of global relief effort. Beginning today, adventurers and captains can visit Groupees.com/PlayForACause to purchase in-game items and help those affected by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. All of Perfect World Entertainment and Cryptic Studios’ proceeds will be split between two non-profit organizations that provide millions worldwide with counseling, health, and educational services. The groups are Pop Culture Hero Coalition, an anti-bully organization led by Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Star Trek Online’s Chase Masterson, and United Way, a global non-profit focused on providing every person with education, health, and financial stability.
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The promotion offers two tiers of items for each game priced at USD $2 and $10. Quantities for some items are limited and may sell out quickly. Here’s the list of items:
Neverwinter
Available for all platforms (PC, Xbox One, PlayStation 4)
- Tier 1 – $2.00 USD
- Blue Companion Choice Pack: Users will choose between the Cambion Magus and Astral Deva.
- Tier 2 – $10.00 USD
- Dragonborn Race Pack
- Users who purchase this tier will automatically be granted items from Tier 1
Star Trek Online
Available for all platforms (PC, Xbox One, PlayStation 4)
- Tier 1 – $2.00 USD
- Heroic Risian Caracal Pet
- Heroic Tribble
- Title: Heroic
- Tier 2 – $10.00 USD
- Somerville Intel Science Vessel T6
- Batlh Intel Science Vessel T6
- 1 Fleet Module
- Users who purchase this tier will automatically be granted items from Tier 1
In 2018, Masterson spoke to ComicBook.com about the Pop Culture Hero Coalition. “Pop Culture Hero Coalition is the first-ever organization to make a stand against bullying, racism, misogyny, LGBT bullying, cyberbullying and other forms of hate using pop culture stories that we can all relate to. So we take these stories that are onscreen and we make them happen in real life. So our motto is ‘We love superheroes. Why not be one?’ It’s so important that we see the transcendent nature of these stories, especially Star Trek and really beginning with Star Trek. Gene Roddenberry said that each episode of Star Trek was a morality play and so why not take these stories and teach children and adults to have empathy and to have inclusion and to see each other as human and have the right to be whoever we want to be and to choose kindness and to stand up for each other?
“That has to happen, whether it’s in kindergarten or grade school or high school or workplace bullying or relationship bullying or terrorism or war, it’s all the same dynamics and if we can teach children early on to choose kindness and choose empathy and to become allies for each other and to have resilience so if they do get bullied, they know they have a deep sense of who they are, and it doesn’t destroy them. All of those things are so important to teach children so that we can have them grow up into healthy adults.”
