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I’ve been a long time follower of the guys over at Humble Bundle – I think it’s a great idea and the ‘pay what you want’ scheme is great for people who can’t always afford to pay the full retail price.
I’ve only ever paid under the average once – I paid £1 and got 6 excellent games. The value for money is incredible and, in most cases, unbeatable. Here’s how it works:
Humble will post a list of around six games, four of which you’re entitled to for just a penny (should you be so inclined). The other two will only be available if you pay more than the average of all that’s been paid so far. This usually levels out at around $6. Then, three or so days after the initial release of the bundle, they’ll throw another two or three games into it for people who beat the average. If you’ve already beaten the average before the games are added, the keys for the new games are automatically added to your list.
It’s so simple and everybody wins! You can even choose how you want to split your donation between the three main recipients; The charity (Usually Child’s Play and another supporting charity), the game developers and the Humble Bundle employees.
This flexible system has raised over $29M for various charities and will continue to, especially during the current financial climate. The recently released Humble Store has also raised over $250k for charity and has games on sale all the time.
Almost all of the bundles will provide you with license keys that you can redeem on Steam, though some will also be for EA’s Steam equivalent, Origin.
Keep up-to-date with their deals and achievements at Humble Mumble and get buying!