The sea-faring pirate game Sea of Thieves gets new content for players to customize their ships with new sails that will light things up. While the game's last update added dogs and new Black Market deals, the Sails of Union will provide players a flashy new set of sails for their ships with the proceeds going to the charity Stand Up to Cancer.

Players who are feeling very generous or just like the sails can purchase them for their ships while supporting goodwill for others. Video games are no stranger to raising money for charity, whether it's DestinyCall of Duty, or the recent Fall Guys charity contest in August called "Battle of the Brands." Sea of Thieves is sailing in familiar waters here.

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The Sails of Union are made to be very appealing for players to purchase on their own, and they have a particular effect that works in tandem with the game's day/night cycle. During the day, the sails appear as a bright yellow with a set of three black arrows intersecting each other as the sail's banner. Then at night, the sails light up as if they are stars themselves, brightening up the darkness similarly to the way constellations do. The sails costs £4.99/$5.99 USD and are available now on Steam and the Microsoft Store.

Stand Up to Cancer is a charitable program from the Entertainment Industry Foundation (EIF) dedicated to offering new and effective cancer treatments to patients by bringing the best scientific minds available together. The program funds collaborative and innovative efforts between multi-institutional researchers in tackling cancer and spreading awareness of its impact on people's lives. The proceeds from Sea of Thieves' Sails of Union sales will go directly to the charity and its efforts in doing so. Research organizations have used video games to help fund research before, like when the Cure Rare Diseases (CRD) hosted a charity Fortnite tournament in September.

This isn't the first time that Sea of Thieves has donated to charity. Previously, the game's developer Rare had sold in-game items bought by players with real-world money that went to SpecialEffect, a UK-based charity focused on using technology to help disabled individuals play video games. The in-game items were also pirate sails, called the Noble Pathfinder Sails, and the developer was able to raise $76,000 for the charity.

Video games are a strong avenue for aiding charities in the past, and with millions of players playing the game, Sea of Thieves has the chance to get many eyes on the sails. The Sails of Union can be purchased now and will be available until November 6, 2020.

Sea of Thieves is available now on PC, Xbox Game Pass, and Xbox One.

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Source: Eurogamer