Humble Indie Bundle 3 (or is it 4?)

August 2, 2011 4:16 PM

There's a new Humble Indie Bundle out. (Previously, Previously, also Previously.) The popular pay-what-you-want game distribution offers up Crayon Physics Deluxe, Cogs, VVVVVV, Hammerfight, and And Yet It Moves for all three major OS platforms, and works with Steam. You set the price; you decide what charity gets the money.

Added bonuses: All purchasers will receive a free copy of Steel Storm, and everyone who buys the bundle will get to play Minecraft for free until August 14.

The purchase window expires in just under a week, so jump on it if you want it.

posted by hippybear (48 comments total)

More and more the "runs on Mac" thing is meaningful for me, especially with little indie games that I can grab a few minutes of here and there while otherwise minding the site. I picked this up and finally gave VVVVVV a shot despite fearing I'd haaaaaate it, and it's actually really wonderful but I just got to Veni Vidi Vici and I haaaaaaate it. It's totally an optional "get the shiny" side bit and I know I should skip it but I JUST CAN'T STOP TRYING.
posted by cortex at 4:21 PM on August 2, 2011

Good to see Linux users punching above their weight.
posted by Ritchie at 4:24 PM on August 2, 2011 [1 favorite]

This is a week old already; surprised it wasn't posted yet.

It's worth it just for VVVVVV, which is retro-tastic. It's also worth noting that this is a brand new version of VVVVVV, rewritten with a new engine, so it's a tad snappier than the older Flash version. Plus: level editor!
posted by neckro23 at 4:26 PM on August 2, 2011

Fun fact, VVVVVV was re-written in C++ just for the bundle.
posted by hellojed at 4:27 PM on August 2, 2011 [2 favorites]

The bundle in question also includes Steel Storm: Burning Retribution (which was added in after the fact).

I'll say that again, because it probably makes no sense in the context of previous software buying experiences: I bought the bundle. Then they added more stuff to it. I get the extra stuff without having to pay more or pay again. If you buy the bundle today, you get all the original stuff, plus the extra stuff.

They do a whole lot of things right: No DRM. No install limits. Buy once, play on multiple machines and platforms. Want to use Steam for convenience? You can do that. Want to not use Steam and just get standalone installers? You can do that too.

It doesn't hurt that (some of, depending on your personal tastes) the games are fun, either.

I bought the three bundles before this (1, 2 and Frozenbyte), and every single interaction along the way has been non-enraging. That is very much the exception rather than the rule when it comes to PC gaming.
posted by sourcequench at 4:29 PM on August 2, 2011 [6 favorites]

It's stuff like this that makes it hard to care very much that Blizzard doesn't want me as a customer.
posted by straight at 4:32 PM on August 2, 2011 [9 favorites]

Damn straight, straight.
posted by tumid dahlia at 4:33 PM on August 2, 2011

And given the mandatory ISP monitoring legislation before congress (I assume the earlier post was disappeared by the black helicopters?), the option to donate to the EFF is timely.

Sigh, I was doing so well with work and getting things done too.
posted by formless at 4:34 PM on August 2, 2011

Average Windows: $3.81
Average Mac: $6.61
Average Linux: $11.65
posted by Mister Fabulous at 4:41 PM on August 2, 2011

Yeah that Windows average is my fault, sorry. I accidentally put the decimal in the wrong place in "0.40" :-(
posted by tumid dahlia at 4:43 PM on August 2, 2011

Not long after (or just before) the door closed on Humble Indie Bundle #2, they guys behind the bundle announced an extra bonus: the first Humble Indie Bundle to everyone who bought the second one.

Yeah. AWESOME.
posted by chrominance at 4:46 PM on August 2, 2011

These guys are great, and the games are too. Bought it yesterday because I'm way cooler than you.
posted by BlackLeotardFront at 5:00 PM on August 2, 2011

Average Windows: $3.81
Average Mac: $6.61
Average Linux: $11.65

Also interesting is that while Windows users pay less per bundle, they also account for over 50% of the take overall.
posted by L'Estrange Fruit at 5:28 PM on August 2, 2011

I bought it last week (*cough*) but couldn't get the Steam code to work. /shrug
posted by L'Estrange Fruit at 5:30 PM on August 2, 2011

Oh vvvvvv why must you be so deliciously enraging

I mean engaging

Yes that's it
posted by DoctorFedora at 5:36 PM on August 2, 2011

Not long after (or just before) the door closed on Humble Indie Bundle #2, they guys behind the bundle announced an extra bonus: the first Humble Indie Bundle to everyone who bought the second one.

Whoa! Thanks chrominance! I guess I own twice as many humble indie games as I thought I did! I'm definitely going to have to be more generous when I get #3.
posted by straight at 5:52 PM on August 2, 2011

Also interesting is that while Windows users pay less per bundle, they also account for over 50% of the take overall.

From an economic standpoint it's not really that surprising, though. Windows users are spoilt for choice from a gaming perspective, so they'll obviously value the Bundle least. Mac users have less options and value the Bundle more highly; Linux users are... well, on Linux, and so value it most highly.
posted by mightygodking at 5:55 PM on August 2, 2011

There needs to be clarification on whether if the ipad variant will be available as part of the bundle and if so, how to download. Ah well, my honey gets this every year as a gift.
posted by jadepearl at 6:15 PM on August 2, 2011

I gave most of our several sigmas higher payment to the EFF. They do good work. And hey: now I'm finally motivated to play Braid from the last bundle. (I'm somewhat behind on my gaming.)
posted by seanmpuckett at 6:16 PM on August 2, 2011

Speaking of economics, I'm really curious about how optimal this strategy is. Is there a floor or a set price point they could choose for this bundle that would net a larger total amount? Are there, for each person who paid $1000, more than a thousand who paid a penny but would have paid a dollar if that had been the minimum price? Could they have sold 250,000 bundles for $5 each?
posted by straight at 6:17 PM on August 2, 2011

Not long after (or just before) the door closed on Humble Indie Bundle #2, they guys behind the bundle announced an extra bonus: the first Humble Indie Bundle to everyone who bought the second one.

A few days before the end of HIB#2, they announced that everyone who had already purchased it would get HIB#1 as well, and that any new purchases for more than the average price ($7 something at that point) also got a copy. Something of a bonus, plus an incentive for a bit higher payments at the end.
posted by JiBB at 6:18 PM on August 2, 2011

Speaking of economics, I'm really curious about how optimal this strategy is. Is there a floor or a set price point they could choose for this bundle that would net a larger total amount? Are there, for each person who paid $1000, more than a thousand who paid a penny but would have paid a dollar if that had been the minimum price? Could they have sold 250,000 bundles for $5 each?
posted by straight at 6:17 PM on August 2 [+] [!]

Relatedly, doesn't classical economics say that everyone would pay 1 cent, thus maximising their individual benefit for the minimum outlay?

What's the deal with the ONE MILLION DOLLARS it has earned, classical economics?

Why are you punching yourself, classical economics?

What, you're gonna cry now?

Classical economics gonna cry?
posted by Sebmojo at 6:39 PM on August 2, 2011 [30 favorites]

There needs to be clarification on whether if the ipad variant will be available as part of the bundle

The website is pretty clear on having the games available for Windows, Mac, and Linux. No mention of iOS anywhere. Not sure how much more clarification you need.
posted by hippybear at 6:41 PM on August 2, 2011

jadepearl: is that ever the case? I'm not sure Apple wants devs using codes like that for either of their stores (offering codes to existing customers would seem to be an ideal way to migrate them to the Mac App Store, for instance).

I'd be happy to be proven mistaken, but I doubt offering redemtption codes to all customers would be possible for the devs.
posted by dumbland at 6:42 PM on August 2, 2011

Also, now that I've given all the games a brief try, my reactions (in approximate order from most to least liked):

• VVVVVV: Minimalistic controls (left, right, flip gravity), graphics, etc, with a focus on quickly moving through well designed puzzles. Frequent checkpoints and instant restart-after-death helps you not mind the fact that you're going to fail and die quite a bit. Fun chiptunes soundtrack.
• And Yet It Moves: A very similar central idea to VVVVVV—moving and changing gravity to navigate a somewhat abstract world from checkpoint to checkpoint, avoiding death without fighting—but somehow ends up a completely different game. Slower action, gentle music, torn-paper and pencil sketch style graphics makes this much more meditative compared to VVVVVV's twitch-focused puzzles.
• Steel Storm: Seems like a reasonably well done top-down arcade shoot-em-up style game. Fun, but nothing surprising so far. Looks like multiplayer might be interesting?
• Cogs: Interesting little puzzles, but didn't hold my concentration. Maybe worth another try if I'm feeling bored at some point?
• Crayon Physics Deluxe: A cute concept, fun to toy with for a bit, but not compelling enough to keep playing. Not enough structure to feel challenging, not enough complexity to keep me exploring it. The drawing interface might feel more fun on a tablet.
• Hammerfight: After working through the tutorial, I found it awkward to control, and not exciting enough to keep trying it out.

About par for the Humble Bundles so far: I'll play about half the games, and might have otherwise separately purchased (or already have purchased) one of those.
posted by JiBB at 6:53 PM on August 2, 2011

Top Contributors:

2. @notch $4,048.00

Has Notch made it and become a super philanthropist by being a donor of product and finance? Is this like bidding on your own artwork at a charity auction? The man's a champion now.
posted by Winnemac at 7:20 PM on August 2, 2011

I think it's fascinating that buyers can choose the distribution of the money paid. I'm in just for the experience of taking part of this interesting economics experiment. Not for the games at all, nope, not at all. :crosses fingers behind her back:
posted by smirkette at 7:27 PM on August 2, 2011

Hammerfight is so awesome, in a very physics-motor-skill-based Cryptic Sea style. Not to be played with a touchpad (I cheated and doubled my mouse sensitivity too...)
posted by anthill at 7:57 PM on August 2, 2011 [1 favorite]

I just got this bundle as a gift from my ex <333.
posted by subdee at 8:11 PM on August 2, 2011

More and more the "runs on Mac" thing is meaningful for me, especially with little indie games that I can grab a few minutes of here and there while otherwise minding the site. I picked this up and finally gave VVVVVV a shot despite fearing I'd haaaaaate it, and it's actually really wonderful but I just got to Veni Vidi Vici and I haaaaaaate it. It's totally an optional "get the shiny" side bit and I know I should skip it but I JUST CAN'T STOP TRYING.

DON'T STOP TRYING! YOU CAN DO IT!

The best part about Veni Vidi Vici is that once you get it, you've got it. It's muscle memory. I sat down to play through VVVVVV again like 6 months later and it took me about 15 tries. Worth it. Don't give up. The bonus for getting all the trinkets is also totally worthwhile.
posted by vogon_poet at 8:27 PM on August 2, 2011 [2 favorites]

During the last humble bundle, Notch (creator of minecraft, for those reading the thread that aren't aware) got in a bidding/donation war with the creator of Garry's Mod.

My opinion of the games: hammerfight is kind of terrible, but I've gotten more than I paid for out of previous bundles and I get to donate to the EFF, so once again I got my confirmation of purchase a couple of hours before the announcement email. I've been too busy catching up with the steam sale a few weeks ago to try all of the rest, but I'll definitely come back to crayon physics and VVVVVV.

Incidentally, Notch is a longtime fan of VVVV, and likes to mess around with small java games.
posted by sandswipe at 8:34 PM on August 2, 2011 [1 favorite]

It looks like the Linux version of Crayon Physics requires GLIBC 2.9 or higher, making it unusable on Ubuntu 8.04. It runs fine on my 10.04 box, but not on my 8.04 machine. FYI.
posted by jiawen at 9:57 PM on August 2, 2011

For those not enjoying HammerFight: Give it some time. The game has some ... trying moments, for sure, but once you get a hang of the controls it's one of the most engaging and most visceral feeling combat engines I've ever played.

David Rosen did an awesome job talking about it in this here video, if you want to be sold on it a bit more:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YaJT-FFymZM

I really urge you to stick through it!
posted by weasel at 11:04 PM on August 2, 2011

I've gotten Indie Bundles 1, 2 and 3, registered them on Steam, and then... done almost nothing with any of them. The most I've done in them is play through World of Goo again (I first went through the Wii version). I guess it's nice to have them if I want to play them.
posted by JHarris at 11:35 PM on August 2, 2011

I've gotten Indie Bundles 1, 2 and 3, registered them on Steam, and then... done almost nothing with any of them. . . . I guess it's nice to have them if I want to play them.

That could be said for a large bit of my Steam collection. With all of the sales they're running damn near constantly, I'm probably set for gaming for the next year or two at least (and I'm not exaggerating).

However, having said that... *goes to check the daily deals*

Valve has created a monster.
posted by menschlich at 5:20 AM on August 3, 2011 [1 favorite]

I really like And Yet It Moves. That was the winner for me in this one. Indy gaming I <3 you.
posted by jopreacher at 8:03 AM on August 3, 2011

Speaking of Steam, I see they just got Limbo, the indie XBox game from last year. Very little fanfare for a highly esteemed game.
posted by rtimmel at 8:07 AM on August 3, 2011

Limbo is super great as a little bit of art gaming.
posted by cortex at 8:12 AM on August 3, 2011

Speaking as a Linux user, I keep buying these and never actually playing them. I pay for the illusion that I have free time. Since all of my productive software was free, I guess I can afford to.
posted by Stagger Lee at 8:31 AM on August 3, 2011 [3 favorites]

I don't understand the Hammerfight meh - it's a riot! I played it for the first time last night. By the time I was done I had my desk cleaned off for the first time in weeks so I could have room to swing the mouse around. I probably don't NEED to swing the mouse around that much, but it's fun...

And VVVVVV is, of course, evil genius.
posted by dragstroke at 8:52 AM on August 3, 2011

It's just been announced that owners of Bundle 3 will get the Bundle 2 games. I just checked my download page, and yup, Braid, Cortex Command, Machinarium, Osmos and Revenge of the Titans have all been added.

If you've yet to buy, you have to beat the current average price in order to qualify.
posted by flipper at 10:48 AM on August 3, 2011

Stagger Lee, I have the same problem. I've bought all 4 of these (paying way above average, apparently), and I have not played any of them since #1, and I'm not even sure that counts, since Portal was free on Steam around that time.
posted by mysterpigg at 1:42 PM on August 3, 2011

What a great little bundle! I bought the first one, and honestly didn't play any of them, but I'm glad I bought them anyway. Getting the second bundle added along was a really nice surprise.

By the way, I've tried playing Hammerfight on my iMac, and it just quits on load - flashes to a black screen and then goes back to the desktop. I've tried removing everything and reinstalling, with no luck. Any ideas? I can't seem to get any tech support anywhere...
posted by Magnakai at 3:56 PM on August 3, 2011

In other news, NO WHAT HAPPENED TO MY VVVVV SAVES?!?!?!?!? ARGH!!
posted by Magnakai at 4:00 PM on August 3, 2011

Magnakai, if you mean they're not there when you upgrade to version 2.0, then he's working on a save-game converter. The original saves are probably still there on your computer and there's an unofficial converter available here that Terry Cavanagh endorses until he gets his own official one finished.

The original VVVVVV was done in Flash, so it's possible to accidentally erase those saves if you clear your Flash cache. I hope that's not the case for you.
posted by straight at 4:17 PM on August 3, 2011

Pain... pain.... pain.... Seriously, though, I think they're still there in my Library/Prefs etc as detailed in that amazing link.

Cheers straight, the fraying cords of sanity are still intact thanks to you.
posted by Magnakai at 5:49 PM on August 3, 2011

MetaFilter: the fraying cords of sanity
posted by hippybear at 6:53 PM on August 3, 2011

So, they've added another game to the bundle (Atom Zombie Smasher), and if you pay more than the average price of $5.48, you'll also get all of Humble Indie Bundle #2 (Braid, Cortex Command, Machinarium, Osmos, and Revenge Of The Titans).

Cortex Command doesn't seem to be a remote for a MeFi mod, so I'm not sure how much fun it actually is...
posted by hippybear at 2:27 PM on August 5, 2011