Plague Inc. is getting a free new mode aimed at fighting, not creating, global pandemics

Plague Inc. developer Ndemic Creations is working on a new mode that gives players the job of stopping a deadly pandemic rather than creating one.

The developer announced the upcoming mode along with its news of a $250,000 donation split between the Coalition of Epidemic Preparedness Innovations and the World Health Organization's COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund.

"Eight years ago, I never imagined the real world would come to resemble a game of Plague Inc., or that so many players would be using Plague Inc. to help them get through an actual pandemic," said Plague Inc. creator James Vaughan. "We are proud to be able to help support the vital work of the WHO and CEPI as they work towards finding a vaccine for COVID-19."

Ndemic is developing the new game mode with the help of experts from the World Health Organization and the Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network. In it, players will be tasked with managing the disease's progression while boosting healthcare efforts and controlling things like triaging, quarantining, social distancing, and the closure of public services.

"When arranging our donations with the WHO and CEPI, we were repeatedly asked if we could make a game which let the player work to stop an outbreak. Therefore, as well as providing financial support, we are accelerating work on a new Plague Inc. game mode which lets players save the world from a deadly disease outbreak."

The mode will be free to players when it goes live. There is no official release date just yet.

In January, Plague Inc. saw an increase in sales during early the stages of the spreading coronavirus. Ndemic would go on to release a public statement warning users that Plague Inc. "is a game, not a scientific model and that the current coronavirus outbreak is a very real situation which is impacting a huge number of people."