14 ms·

Humble subscription service is dumping Mac, Linux access in 18 days

317 points by _hao 5y ago

JohnHaugeland 5y ago
I haven't shopped with them since they started sending extreme adult content to mailing lists they knew contained 13 year olds
anothernewdude 5y ago
I'm just learning now that they had a launcher.
marcodiego 5y ago
Humble is not be a good word to describe a service which behaves like this.
- Freak_NL 5y ago
  They should change their brand to 'umble. That should at least evoke the proper image of a greedy character claiming to be “very 'umble”.
RcouF1uZ4gsC 5y ago
> Those subscribers have until January 31 to use the existing website interface to download DRM-free copies of any games' Mac or Linux versions. This part makes the above seem pretty reasonable. They are making a business decision on which platforms to support or not, however, because the games are DRM-free, current Max and Linux subscribers can just download the games and cancel their subscription.
- kergonath 5y ago
  It also makes pretty reasonable the choice not to hop on this kind of subscription services.
- etiam 5y ago
  I'm learning of this with two weeks notice through the present post and probably have on the order of 400 games to download/backup/update, plus assets such as soundtracks, plus assorted book-like media. And I'm not even in very high numbers. It happens easily with the bundle based purchase model over a few years. All to be downloaded as individual files, in a script dependent homepage which will only expose the links after clicking the entry for a specific work and usually selecting the odd tab or dropdown menu in addition to that. The way this is being handled, for people who weren't buying for the Windows version, I find it hard to see as anything but unilateral confiscation of all purchases to date, with extremely questionable notice.
  - viceroyalbean 5y ago
    If I'm not complete misunderstanding the article the launcher-only downloads only apply to Humble Trove, which isn't explicitly purchased. It's still really bad, and doesn't make any sense as a business decision, but from what I can tell this would not affect your access to purchased games.
    - etiam 5y ago
      It would indeed be less outrageous (but still bad) if you're right, and I may have misinterpreted the extent, but to me following expression in the article seems reason for concern, even about access to purchased games: an entirely new launcher app, which must be used to access and download Humble Choice, Humble Trove, and Humble Games Collection games going forward
      - ThunderSizzle 5y ago
        The article appears to be wrong. Humble Choice is being revamped, but the core part of getting game keys every month for use on (primarily) Steam is still relatively unchanged: https://support.humblebundle.com/hc/en-us/articles/4413091652763-Humble-app-Humble-Collections-FAQ https://support.humblebundle.com/hc/en-us/articles/441309165... What is the Humble app? The Humble app is the access point for the Humble Games Collection, a perk for Choice members launching February 1st, 2022. What can I find in the Humble app? The Humble Games Collection: A growing number of Humble Games published titles are available with an active Choice membership through the Humble app. The Vault: The Vault will include over 50 Humble Original Games. Once downloaded, these games can be kept forever regardless of Choice Membership status. Also: https://support.humblebundle.com/hc/en-us/articles/4411127626139-Changes-Coming-to-Humble-Choice-FAQ#choice_info https://support.humblebundle.com/hc/en-us/articles/441112762... Which games do I get to keep forever? All Humble Choice members receive a selection of hand-picked games redeemable via a key for select platforms, when available (Steam, Epic, Origin, GOG, etc.). You can find these games at the Humble Choice Hub after unlocking the current month of Choice. Games in the Humble app for Windows PC, including the Humble Games Collection, are only available to active Humble Choice members. New Humble Choice games are available on the first Tuesday of every month.
yreg 5y ago
Any idea what's the reason? I haven't been following Humble, but a long time ago they were a champion of non-windows gaming. Sad to see them leaving the battlefield. Is it because they don't want to maintain a cross-platform launcher app?
- xzjis 5y ago
  Sounds like they don't want to maintain a cross-platform launcher app and they want to impose this launcher app and discontinue downloads from their website.
- sdflhasjd 5y ago
  I think because they had a bit of a niche with more non-windows users, but have since tried to go after more money (i.e mainstream) that their Mac and Linux users are just a tiny portion not worth supporting now
- daniel-thompson 5y ago
  Humble was bought by IGN in 2017. Some MBA guy there thinks they can net more by "streamlining" the service to just the dominant platform.
  - irrational 5y ago
    I assume the numbers back up the idea. If the Mac/linux users are bringing in $100,000 a year, but it costs $200,000 a year to maintain the cross platform launcher, it makes sense on paper to dump them.
    - yreg 5y ago
      What is their current launcher's stack? I know we are hating on Electron on this forum, but I'd expect them to have a cross-platform node app that's relatively cheap to maintain. Rebuilding it as a native Windows app (especially by a team experienced in web frontends) sounds more expensive on first thought.
    - toyg 5y ago
account-5 5y ago
They just lost a subscriber. It really does bring the fact you can't trust an online service is going to provide anything in the way of consistency.
- nerdjon 5y ago
  I just canceled mine as well. While I have my windows computer primarily for gaming, I have long wished I could move away to a custom built linux or just a single Mac. I don't want to support some place that once was good about alternative platforms and then dropped it. Especially when they themselves are not the ones making the games and are just the platform for getting them.
- KerrAvon 5y ago
  Classic subscriber here, same. - I never really liked the Humble Choice mechanism. More quantity, usually less quality - I certainly don’t need another crappy game launcher - Despite moving all my gaming to a windows box after macOS Catalina, I’m disappointed at the loss of macOS/Linux options I’ll stick with Steam, GOG, and itch. And resentfully Origin and Ubisoft when I want to play Mass Effect: LE or an Ubi sandbox.
sersi 5y ago
Ever since they've been bought out by IGN, humble's strategy has been baffling. They switched from Monthly to Choice but quickly had issues because they had to provide a lot more games (reducing the quality of each individual games), the price for new subscribers (20 usd) was too high and existing users who were grandfathered could easily skip a month (I'm pretty sure they still made money on those who forgot to skip a month). Now, they're returning to a similar model as the Monthly, but long time subscribers end up paying more than new subscribers (due to currency exchange fees). They should have fixed the amount to something like 14 usd so that long time subscribers would stay to keep their discounted price. And, to prevent skipping a month, they now reset the 20% discount on the humble store to 10% every time a month has been skipped and only increase it back to 20% after 12 consecutive unskipped months. It could be a good strategy if not for the fact that the humble store is not cheap, the 20% discount barely made it competitive with other online game stores. So, instead of incentivising people from not pausing months, they're just incentivising people to not buy from their store. And then finally, I have no idea for the reasoning behind locking the games behind a launcher. Why couldn't they keep the DRM free games for platforms not covered by the launcher?
- VonGuard 5y ago
  Easy to explain: Some MBA who likes games has been given THE spreadsheet for the Humble company. He or she is now moving things around on the spreadsheet as a daily function of their job.
- andruby 5y ago
  I didn’t know IGN bought Humble. That really explains a lot.
  - schnevets 5y ago
    It just introduces more questions. Namely, "Why did Ziff Davis (a mostly media and marketing company) feel the need to buy a gaming storefront?"
    - Ekaros 5y ago
xwdv 5y ago
This will be the end of Humble for me.
- isaiahg 5y ago
  Humble died around 2017 when ign bought them. Ever since then they've been unable to figure out their identity. Their bundles have been pretty bad lately too. Mostly just old titles and assets. They stuck when they launched. If they had only kept their business model and improved they're service they would still be doing great.
- JD557 5y ago
  Same. I've been thinking about cancelling my subscription since September, as the quality of games seem to have decreased (or at least my interest in them) and I haven't really played any of them. I've kept the subscription mostly out of FOMO, since I'm still in the old price tier, but I don't really need another launcher for games I won't play. Also, I have quite the game backlog now, so I guess I'll just let the subscription expire and look for alternatives.
  - Aeolun 5y ago
    Lol, I’m there too, though the last two months have actually been kind of good, in the sense I got two games I already had on my wishlist. Even with the decreased quality, $12 for 10 games is pretty good.
sofixa 5y ago
When people complain about Electron and similar cross-platform solutions, this is the alternative. I'll take a bad Electron app eating my RAM over nothing any day :)
- yjftsjthsd-h 5y ago
  > When people complain about Electron and similar cross-platform solutions, this is the alternative. I'm pretty sure the alternative was nothing; their local download center doesn't need to exist, let alone be portable. Just have a web page with downloads.
- pjerem 5y ago
  If I understand, you would prefer a bad electron game launcher over just no game launcher as it today ? Nobody is forcing Humble to develop an nth game launcher. Nobody really needs another launcher. Launchers and their associated DRMs are the reason I prefer buying a game on GOG even when they are more expensive.
  - numpad0 5y ago
    I suppose he mean he prefer bad Electron cross-platform apps over an .msi file of whatever significance that crashes in WINE.
- deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
- unionpivo 5y ago
  not really, I take good native app over bad electron one any day of the week. I am linux user but i will not miss humble bundle.
Naga 5y ago
It seems a bit like an unforced error to be dumping Linux a few months before Steam's new Linux-based Steam Link is released.
- Kye 5y ago
  Maybe there's some weird business logic, not necessarily well-founded, driven by that launch that makes them think it's a bad idea to support it.
- lozenge 5y ago
  Steam's Linux investment is as much to reduce Microsoft's power over it as for its actual users.
  - toastal 5y ago
    Sounds like a win-win to me
  - pjmlp 5y ago
    Ah that is why XBox and Windows gamers are running in droves into Linux.
    - stavros 5y ago
      The grandparent is saying that Steam didn't want to have to run on Windows, so they're investing in Linux so they can use that as the base OS for gaming. Otherwise Microsoft could demand a cut.
    - travisporter 5y ago
      Tongue-in-cheek, but after about 5 years of dual booting I am actually finally linux-only with Proton and steam
  - vintermann 5y ago
    That's almost the same thing.
  - 5y ago
Aeolun 5y ago
On humble, I don’t really care. It all goes to steam keys anyway. DRM free has never really been their thing. If I want something truly DRM free I go to gog.com.
- mminer237 5y ago
  DRM-free was absolutely Humble Bundle's initial thing, along with pay-what-you want and a portion going to charity. Just look at the news coverage from back then: https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2010/12/humble-bundle-2-is-live-5-great-games-no-drm-pay-what-you-want/ https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2010/12/humble-bundle-2-is-li...
- toastercat 5y ago
  DRM-Free was definitely their thing, as were Linux releases. Many indie titles actually debuted on Linux via Humble Indie Bundles.
- drumhead 5y ago
  DRM free was one of their original selling points. They were quite proud of that.
- SquareWheel 5y ago
  > DRM free has never really been their thing. Do you not remember the videos they did for early bundles? "It's pay-what-you-want, DRM free, cross-platform and helps charity".
  - Aeolun 5y ago
    Probably not. I only subscribed like 6 years ago. Definitely didn’t feel DRM free to me from that point.
  - cosmojg 5y ago
    Oh man, the music's playing in my head now. That's some real nostalgia right there.
bashy 5y ago
Been a while since I've heard about them. Not sure if I redeemed all of these so they may still work https://www.humblebundle.com/downloads?key=b227qZU5huqV https://www.humblebundle.com/downloads?key=b227qZU5huqV
- cosmojg 5y ago
  That link is broken.
  - bashy 5y ago
    They've deleted it, been working for years that link. Someone there is reading this post.
    - etiam 5y ago
      It was working for me within an hour or so of you posting it here today. I didn't claim anything from it, but if there started to be a diversity of accounts suddenly registering the keys it wouldn't surprise me if it raises flags somehow.
      - bashy 5y ago
        The keys are just keys, claimed on Origin/Steam etc so not sure what system they'd have in place for checking that. Could be lots of different IPs loading the page but I still don't see why they'd worry about that.
styeco 5y ago
I've canceled my Humble Monthly a while ago. It's just another online game store at this point, there's nothing of the original spirit left. The amount they give to charity is tiny these days, and there haven't been any games I'm interested in in a long time. I'll buy at GOG tyvm.
- _fat_santa 5y ago
  I remember subscribing to Humble Bundle back when they came out with the original humble bundle. Four or five games, pay what you want, works on Linux. As a kid in High School, having a source for good Linux games was amazing. I paid for a few Humble Bundles but I eventually moved away from gaming in general. Sad to see how far they have fallen.
ryukafalz 5y ago
Well that sucks. Guess I'll be looking into how to bulk download my library this month, and no point in keeping my subscription after this if it no longer supports my platform.
pjmlp 5y ago
Another one joins Loki Software.
zibzab 5y ago
What is going on with this company? First it was the Android madness (non-working pre-release versions were sold and never updated). Then they changed slider defaults so very little money was sent to charities. Then they started selling game assets instead of games. Then they sued Steam. And now this...
- Ekaros 5y ago
  I would guess too much growth in costs and staff leading to need to sell anything to cover the costs. Then everything else, but lowest competence falls on wayside...
  - zibzab 5y ago
    Humble has a huge organisation. Is it really needed for something that is supposed to be a charity-ish?
    - ATsch 5y ago
      It really isn't that anymore, especially not after having been bought by a billion dollar media/tech holdings company.
- humbledbundled 5y ago
  They launched as a cute side project created by a respected independent game developer that primarily generated revenue for charities through one-off bundle events. Their success with that model attracted blockbuster investment because of their high revenues… and then they tried to turn it into a business. The outcome we are seeing now was inevitable, it’s doubtful Humble would have ever seen success if it had started out this way. I have sympathy for the founders, this wasn’t their vision, but it was the likeliest outcome once they took on investment to diverge from what made them successful. Expect to see many more years of frantic and sometimes radical attempts to become a meaningful profit source for their new owners.
  - xtracto 5y ago
Ekaros 5y ago
Overall the last year+ has been mess for Humble Choice what they call their subscription service. Pricing has been full of coupons, introductionary offers and so on. It is not really great confidence if you first offer year for reasonable discount that is 8-9$ a month. And then just after that give people 3 months at 6$ and repeat this. Also users who usually pause often seem to get 2-4$ off from the price... And in the end last month they in the end sold to some people the bundle for 2$... This really does not instil any type of loyalty... At least this change somewhat cleans up all that. But still it has been a mess.
stubish 5y ago
This seems to be the Trove only, which is a collection of games available to subscribers. Hopefully all the non-trove titles people have purchased over the years won't be disappearing (if they are, they should probably tell the purchasers!)
- Ekaros 5y ago
  At least the HiB 2 from over 10 years ago have still working download links. Not that it isn't apparent that Linux software distribution wasn't a mess back then...
999900000999 5y ago
End of an era... I'll have to see what happens though. The Humble Bundle goes out and finds some of the most unique experiences imo. Assuming they still hand out Steam keys, I'll still be a customer. The day I can only download games via another launcher, I'm done.
- oversocialized 5y ago
  Same - I run Linux exclusively and so far Steam Proton works great. If I have to use their launcher for games, I'm out.
  - 999900000999 5y ago
    It feels oddly hostile, as in their intentionally trying to lock out Linux users. I imagine many of the bigger games, only run on Windows. But they should just communicate this, don't force people use a new application. Humble has given me some of my favorite game experiences so I'm going to give them a few months to sort themselves out
chris_wot 5y ago
Well, it was nice knowing you Humble.
creativemonkeys 5y ago
Since 2013, I've spent $1287.38 on bundles in Humble Bundle. This change doesn't seem to affect people like me, how primarily buy bundles, but my guard is up now.
- Ekaros 5y ago
  As a person with Classic sub and first purchase of HiB 2. It really doesn't effect me in anyway. Apart that I can finally just outright cancel my classic and move to pick up the interesting monthly bundles. I'm actually glad for new-subs that they get rid of horrible 20$ price point that no one sensible ended up using. Or should not have to with all the intro offers being shown all the time...
AltruisticGapHN 5y ago
Going Windows only for games nowadays seem short sighted, given the rise of SteamOS, incoming SteamDeck and the rumored Steam Console, Basically with increased Proton compatibility and ease of use from SteamOS... installing Linux instead of Windows sounds like a viable option for gaming. I don't even like Linux all that much myself, and am considering at least trying Steam OS on my PC once I get my SteamDeck.
- sid-ant 5y ago
  SteamDeck hasn't been released yet and it's coming to a limited number of countries, first. With the supply constraints, it's likely that it would take two or more years for SteamOS to have any noticeable market share. And, that is if SteamDeck is a success.
  - throwaway946513 5y ago
    The market for the SteamDeck seems less around the 'Gaming PC' market - and more as a handheld pc. Essentially to bring the market accessibility of PC and 'desktop/laptop' games to a handheld factor. I don't dare take a laptop with me to work to play games on at lunch, but something the size of a Switch with my already existing library? Yes please! It feels like this is a good way to market the device for potential future plans where Valve could build other niche hardware that would improve the viability of Linux for gaming devices on other hardware.
- samtheDamned 5y ago
  On top of that, if it's really trying to get into the same market as Xbox Game Pass, and the Epic giveaways, wouldn't it make more sense to aim at supporting platforms that the xbox game pass/Prime Gaming/EGS giveaways aren't supporting? They're choosing to dump the 2 other major platforms that they would have next to 0 competition in, and focusing on the one major platform where they not only are competing on level ground with the likes of the EGS and Prime Gaming, they're going up against the biggest "games library as a service" offerings in the industry but , that also just happens to be the OS manufacturer as well, Xbox Game Pass. The service that's becoming pre-installed with newer windows builds, that's integrated tightly into the Microsoft ecosystem, and has a better library of both AAA and indie titles than humble bundle ever will.
cestith 5y ago
Humble's doing everything it can lately to make Itch more attractive. https://itch.io/ https://itch.io/
rookderby 5y ago
I had a spreadsheet of the bundles I grabbed back when this was about donating to charities and getting DRM-free software. (I think I've bought at least the first 10 bundles.) The further HB moved from those two goals, the more I lost interest. I even tried the subscription for a while, but it felt like the focus has changed to generating revenue for profit and not to raising funds for charity or giving users DRM-free software. At this point, it is more efficient to donate to a charity directly. [Edit: I guess it was always more efficient to donate to a charity directly, I meant now it is more efficient donate 95% to a charity and take the 5% or whatever to buy a DRM-free game and download it without a client at GOG, Itch, or other site.]
azalemeth 5y ago
One other thing kindly taken from the Ars comments [1] and expanded upon a bit: if anyone else would like to bulk-export their steam keys from this, go to https://www.humblebundle.com/home/keys https://www.humblebundle.com/home/keys and open the developer console and paste in: $('.keyfield-value').toArray().forEach((x) => x.click()) After redeeming the keys you can use the following to get an array of them: var myKeys = $('.unredeemed-keys-table tr').toArray().slice(1).map((tr) => [tr.getElementsByTagName('h4')[0].innerHTML, tr.getElementsByClassName('keyfield-value')[0].innerHTML]) var stringMe = ''; myKeys.forEach((element) => { stringMe=stringMe+(element[1])+","}); console.log(stringMe) Once you've got that, this greasemonkey script might be of interest to bulk-activate them [2] [1] https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2022/01/humble-subscription-service-is-dumping-mac-linux-access-in-18-days/?comments=1&post=40560852#comment-40560852 https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2022/01/humble-subscription-s... [2] https://github.com/Lutymane/Steam-Scripts/raw/master/Batch-Keys-Activator/Batch-Keys-Activator.user.js https://github.com/Lutymane/Steam-Scripts/raw/master/Batch-K...
- azalemeth 5y ago
  For some reason, the second block of code has stopped working for me as keyfield-value no longer has any visible innerHTML and it returns undefined. The following is a less elegant, but equally effective, way of doing the same thing: myString=''; myKeys=document.getElementsByClassName('keyfield-value'); for(ix=0; ix<myKeys.length; ix++){ myString = myString+ myKeys[ix].innerHTML)+"\n"; } console.log(myString)
- smileybarry 5y ago
  I wouldn't use a batch activator, I'm sure Valve has some anti-bot measure that will either throttle activations or lock your account. Better to import them into a password manager (or just a spreadsheet) and activate a specific game when you want to download it.
tzs 5y ago
OT: another site where you have until January 31, 2022 to download your purchases is Pottermore. They gave a lot more notice--the shutdown was announced in 2019. I somehow missed that, but they sent an email at the start of this year reminding users of it. Go to https://bookshelf.pottermore.com/ https://bookshelf.pottermore.com/ and enter your email. They will mail you a link to your bookshelf. Follow that link and you'll find all your books with download links to download DRM-free ePubs.
micromacrofoot 5y ago
What a strange saga.
sandworm101 5y ago
"Own & play your games forever" = BS. "Humble Bundle believes that accessibility is an ongoing effort, and we continually improve our web sites, services, and products in order to provide an optimal experience for all of our users and subscribers." Unless they own a Mac. "Award-winning indies, Humble Originals & classics all at your fingertips. Download from our 70+ DRM-free game library. New titles added every month!" DRM-free? But I have to run your launcher software? If I quacks like a duck it is DRM. "Your exclusive and sole remedy with respect to any Product that is not downloadable or able to be activated within a reasonable period will be either replacement of such Product, store credit or refund, as determined by Humble Bundle in its sole discretion." Ok. Per your terms of service statement. I will be wanting all my money back the moment I can no longer download my purchased software. "Accordingly, in the event that Humble Bundle changes any part of the Service or discontinues the Service, which Humble Bundle may do at its election, you acknowledge that you may no longer be able to use Products to the same extent as prior to such change or discontinuation, and that Humble Bundle shall have no liability to you in such case." Ok. Goodbye. You will no longer get any money from me. I'm very sure I can get the same games elsewhere. https://www.humblebundle.com/ https://www.humblebundle.com/ https://www.humblebundle.com/accessibility https://www.humblebundle.com/accessibility https://www.humblebundle.com/subscription https://www.humblebundle.com/subscription https://www.humblebundle.com/terms https://www.humblebundle.com/terms
dreamling 5y ago
I didn't see the links in here, and couldn't easily find it on the site, but did find the link in my email: Newsletter: https://blog.humblebundle.com/2022/01/11/humble-choice-is-leveling-up/?utm_source=Humble+Bundle+Newsletter https://blog.humblebundle.com/2022/01/11/humble-choice-is-le... Link to their FAQ on the change: https://support.humblebundle.com/hc/en-us/articles/4411127626139 https://support.humblebundle.com/hc/en-us/articles/441112762... Which games do I get to keep forever? https://support.humblebundle.com/hc/en-us/articles/4411127626139#forever https://support.humblebundle.com/hc/en-us/articles/441112762... "All Humble Choice members receive a selection of hand-picked games redeemable via a key for select platforms, when available (Steam, Epic, Origin, GOG, etc.). You can find these games at the Humble Choice Hub after unlocking the current month of Choice. Games in the Humble app for Windows PC, including the Humble Games Collection, are only available to active Humble Choice members. New Humble Choice games are available on the first Tuesday of every month." Which is good, because I have, ~20 pages of keys to redeem since I've been a long time humblebundler and usually only grabbed things as I was playing. I was worried I'd have to redeem them all before Feb, which doesn't sound like the case. So, business as usual for me? though it might be good to get most things I want redeemed over to steam fwiw. It does sound (from reading this thread) that Linux/Mac users who want their DRM free d/ls will need to grab them before the switchover.
thrower123 5y ago
I've never used their subscription service or their game store, but I did buy many bundles over the years. However, they made a UI change in the last year or so to remove the button that would register that you wanted to be reminded by email shortly before the bundle expires. Removing that button has reduced the amount of money I spend on HumbleBundles enormously.
btdmaster 5y ago
Just sent a request for account deletion (https://dsar.humblebundle.com/ https://dsar.humblebundle.com/). Itch.io is much better when it comes to Linux DRM-free games.
Shadonototra 5y ago
what a stupid move.. the only way to go is to boycott

317 points by _hao 5y ago

I haven't shopped with them since they started sending extreme adult content to mailing lists they knew contained 13 year olds

anothernewdude 5y ago

I'm just learning now that they had a launcher.

marcodiego 5y ago

Humble is not be a good word to describe a service which behaves like this.

Freak_NL 5y ago
They should change their brand to 'umble. That should at least evoke the proper image of a greedy character claiming to be “very 'umble”.

RcouF1uZ4gsC 5y ago

> Those subscribers have until January 31 to use the existing website interface to download DRM-free copies of any games' Mac or Linux versions. This part makes the above seem pretty reasonable. They are making a business decision on which platforms to support or not, however, because the games are DRM-free, current Max and Linux subscribers can just download the games and cancel their subscription.

kergonath 5y ago
It also makes pretty reasonable the choice not to hop on this kind of subscription services.
etiam 5y ago
I'm learning of this with two weeks notice through the present post and probably have on the order of 400 games to download/backup/update, plus assets such as soundtracks, plus assorted book-like media. And I'm not even in very high numbers. It happens easily with the bundle based purchase model over a few years. All to be downloaded as individual files, in a script dependent homepage which will only expose the links after clicking the entry for a specific work and usually selecting the odd tab or dropdown menu in addition to that. The way this is being handled, for people who weren't buying for the Windows version, I find it hard to see as anything but unilateral confiscation of all purchases to date, with extremely questionable notice.
- viceroyalbean 5y ago
  If I'm not complete misunderstanding the article the launcher-only downloads only apply to Humble Trove, which isn't explicitly purchased. It's still really bad, and doesn't make any sense as a business decision, but from what I can tell this would not affect your access to purchased games.
  - etiam 5y ago
    It would indeed be less outrageous (but still bad) if you're right, and I may have misinterpreted the extent, but to me following expression in the article seems reason for concern, even about access to purchased games: an entirely new launcher app, which must be used to access and download Humble Choice, Humble Trove, and Humble Games Collection games going forward
    - ThunderSizzle 5y ago
      The article appears to be wrong. Humble Choice is being revamped, but the core part of getting game keys every month for use on (primarily) Steam is still relatively unchanged: https://support.humblebundle.com/hc/en-us/articles/4413091652763-Humble-app-Humble-Collections-FAQ https://support.humblebundle.com/hc/en-us/articles/441309165... What is the Humble app? The Humble app is the access point for the Humble Games Collection, a perk for Choice members launching February 1st, 2022. What can I find in the Humble app? The Humble Games Collection: A growing number of Humble Games published titles are available with an active Choice membership through the Humble app. The Vault: The Vault will include over 50 Humble Original Games. Once downloaded, these games can be kept forever regardless of Choice Membership status. Also: https://support.humblebundle.com/hc/en-us/articles/4411127626139-Changes-Coming-to-Humble-Choice-FAQ#choice_info https://support.humblebundle.com/hc/en-us/articles/441112762... Which games do I get to keep forever? All Humble Choice members receive a selection of hand-picked games redeemable via a key for select platforms, when available (Steam, Epic, Origin, GOG, etc.). You can find these games at the Humble Choice Hub after unlocking the current month of Choice. Games in the Humble app for Windows PC, including the Humble Games Collection, are only available to active Humble Choice members. New Humble Choice games are available on the first Tuesday of every month.

yreg 5y ago

Any idea what's the reason? I haven't been following Humble, but a long time ago they were a champion of non-windows gaming. Sad to see them leaving the battlefield. Is it because they don't want to maintain a cross-platform launcher app?

xzjis 5y ago
Sounds like they don't want to maintain a cross-platform launcher app and they want to impose this launcher app and discontinue downloads from their website.
sdflhasjd 5y ago
I think because they had a bit of a niche with more non-windows users, but have since tried to go after more money (i.e mainstream) that their Mac and Linux users are just a tiny portion not worth supporting now
daniel-thompson 5y ago
Humble was bought by IGN in 2017. Some MBA guy there thinks they can net more by "streamlining" the service to just the dominant platform.
- irrational 5y ago
  I assume the numbers back up the idea. If the Mac/linux users are bringing in $100,000 a year, but it costs $200,000 a year to maintain the cross platform launcher, it makes sense on paper to dump them.
  - yreg 5y ago
    What is their current launcher's stack? I know we are hating on Electron on this forum, but I'd expect them to have a cross-platform node app that's relatively cheap to maintain. Rebuilding it as a native Windows app (especially by a team experienced in web frontends) sounds more expensive on first thought.
  - toyg 5y ago

account-5 5y ago

They just lost a subscriber. It really does bring the fact you can't trust an online service is going to provide anything in the way of consistency.

nerdjon 5y ago
I just canceled mine as well. While I have my windows computer primarily for gaming, I have long wished I could move away to a custom built linux or just a single Mac. I don't want to support some place that once was good about alternative platforms and then dropped it. Especially when they themselves are not the ones making the games and are just the platform for getting them.
KerrAvon 5y ago
Classic subscriber here, same. - I never really liked the Humble Choice mechanism. More quantity, usually less quality - I certainly don’t need another crappy game launcher - Despite moving all my gaming to a windows box after macOS Catalina, I’m disappointed at the loss of macOS/Linux options I’ll stick with Steam, GOG, and itch. And resentfully Origin and Ubisoft when I want to play Mass Effect: LE or an Ubi sandbox.

sersi 5y ago

Ever since they've been bought out by IGN, humble's strategy has been baffling. They switched from Monthly to Choice but quickly had issues because they had to provide a lot more games (reducing the quality of each individual games), the price for new subscribers (20 usd) was too high and existing users who were grandfathered could easily skip a month (I'm pretty sure they still made money on those who forgot to skip a month). Now, they're returning to a similar model as the Monthly, but long time subscribers end up paying more than new subscribers (due to currency exchange fees). They should have fixed the amount to something like 14 usd so that long time subscribers would stay to keep their discounted price. And, to prevent skipping a month, they now reset the 20% discount on the humble store to 10% every time a month has been skipped and only increase it back to 20% after 12 consecutive unskipped months. It could be a good strategy if not for the fact that the humble store is not cheap, the 20% discount barely made it competitive with other online game stores. So, instead of incentivising people from not pausing months, they're just incentivising people to not buy from their store. And then finally, I have no idea for the reasoning behind locking the games behind a launcher. Why couldn't they keep the DRM free games for platforms not covered by the launcher?

VonGuard 5y ago
Easy to explain: Some MBA who likes games has been given THE spreadsheet for the Humble company. He or she is now moving things around on the spreadsheet as a daily function of their job.
andruby 5y ago
I didn’t know IGN bought Humble. That really explains a lot.
- schnevets 5y ago
  It just introduces more questions. Namely, "Why did Ziff Davis (a mostly media and marketing company) feel the need to buy a gaming storefront?"
  - Ekaros 5y ago

xwdv 5y ago

This will be the end of Humble for me.

isaiahg 5y ago
Humble died around 2017 when ign bought them. Ever since then they've been unable to figure out their identity. Their bundles have been pretty bad lately too. Mostly just old titles and assets. They stuck when they launched. If they had only kept their business model and improved they're service they would still be doing great.
JD557 5y ago
Same. I've been thinking about cancelling my subscription since September, as the quality of games seem to have decreased (or at least my interest in them) and I haven't really played any of them. I've kept the subscription mostly out of FOMO, since I'm still in the old price tier, but I don't really need another launcher for games I won't play. Also, I have quite the game backlog now, so I guess I'll just let the subscription expire and look for alternatives.
- Aeolun 5y ago
  Lol, I’m there too, though the last two months have actually been kind of good, in the sense I got two games I already had on my wishlist. Even with the decreased quality, $12 for 10 games is pretty good.

sofixa 5y ago

When people complain about Electron and similar cross-platform solutions, this is the alternative. I'll take a bad Electron app eating my RAM over nothing any day :)

yjftsjthsd-h 5y ago
> When people complain about Electron and similar cross-platform solutions, this is the alternative. I'm pretty sure the alternative was nothing; their local download center doesn't need to exist, let alone be portable. Just have a web page with downloads.
pjerem 5y ago
If I understand, you would prefer a bad electron game launcher over just no game launcher as it today ? Nobody is forcing Humble to develop an nth game launcher. Nobody really needs another launcher. Launchers and their associated DRMs are the reason I prefer buying a game on GOG even when they are more expensive.
- numpad0 5y ago
  I suppose he mean he prefer bad Electron cross-platform apps over an .msi file of whatever significance that crashes in WINE.
deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
unionpivo 5y ago
not really, I take good native app over bad electron one any day of the week. I am linux user but i will not miss humble bundle.

Naga 5y ago

It seems a bit like an unforced error to be dumping Linux a few months before Steam's new Linux-based Steam Link is released.

Kye 5y ago
Maybe there's some weird business logic, not necessarily well-founded, driven by that launch that makes them think it's a bad idea to support it.
lozenge 5y ago
Steam's Linux investment is as much to reduce Microsoft's power over it as for its actual users.
- toastal 5y ago
  Sounds like a win-win to me
- pjmlp 5y ago
  Ah that is why XBox and Windows gamers are running in droves into Linux.
  - stavros 5y ago
    The grandparent is saying that Steam didn't want to have to run on Windows, so they're investing in Linux so they can use that as the base OS for gaming. Otherwise Microsoft could demand a cut.
  - travisporter 5y ago
    Tongue-in-cheek, but after about 5 years of dual booting I am actually finally linux-only with Proton and steam
- vintermann 5y ago
  That's almost the same thing.
- 5y ago

Aeolun 5y ago

On humble, I don’t really care. It all goes to steam keys anyway. DRM free has never really been their thing. If I want something truly DRM free I go to gog.com.

mminer237 5y ago
DRM-free was absolutely Humble Bundle's initial thing, along with pay-what-you want and a portion going to charity. Just look at the news coverage from back then: https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2010/12/humble-bundle-2-is-live-5-great-games-no-drm-pay-what-you-want/ https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2010/12/humble-bundle-2-is-li...
toastercat 5y ago
DRM-Free was definitely their thing, as were Linux releases. Many indie titles actually debuted on Linux via Humble Indie Bundles.
drumhead 5y ago
DRM free was one of their original selling points. They were quite proud of that.
SquareWheel 5y ago
> DRM free has never really been their thing. Do you not remember the videos they did for early bundles? "It's pay-what-you-want, DRM free, cross-platform and helps charity".
- Aeolun 5y ago
  Probably not. I only subscribed like 6 years ago. Definitely didn’t feel DRM free to me from that point.
- cosmojg 5y ago
  Oh man, the music's playing in my head now. That's some real nostalgia right there.

bashy 5y ago

Been a while since I've heard about them. Not sure if I redeemed all of these so they may still work https://www.humblebundle.com/downloads?key=b227qZU5huqV https://www.humblebundle.com/downloads?key=b227qZU5huqV

cosmojg 5y ago
That link is broken.
- bashy 5y ago
  They've deleted it, been working for years that link. Someone there is reading this post.
  - etiam 5y ago
    It was working for me within an hour or so of you posting it here today. I didn't claim anything from it, but if there started to be a diversity of accounts suddenly registering the keys it wouldn't surprise me if it raises flags somehow.
    - bashy 5y ago
      The keys are just keys, claimed on Origin/Steam etc so not sure what system they'd have in place for checking that. Could be lots of different IPs loading the page but I still don't see why they'd worry about that.

styeco 5y ago

I've canceled my Humble Monthly a while ago. It's just another online game store at this point, there's nothing of the original spirit left. The amount they give to charity is tiny these days, and there haven't been any games I'm interested in in a long time. I'll buy at GOG tyvm.

_fat_santa 5y ago
I remember subscribing to Humble Bundle back when they came out with the original humble bundle. Four or five games, pay what you want, works on Linux. As a kid in High School, having a source for good Linux games was amazing. I paid for a few Humble Bundles but I eventually moved away from gaming in general. Sad to see how far they have fallen.

ryukafalz 5y ago

Well that sucks. Guess I'll be looking into how to bulk download my library this month, and no point in keeping my subscription after this if it no longer supports my platform.

pjmlp 5y ago

Another one joins Loki Software.

zibzab 5y ago

What is going on with this company? First it was the Android madness (non-working pre-release versions were sold and never updated). Then they changed slider defaults so very little money was sent to charities. Then they started selling game assets instead of games. Then they sued Steam. And now this...

Ekaros 5y ago
I would guess too much growth in costs and staff leading to need to sell anything to cover the costs. Then everything else, but lowest competence falls on wayside...
- zibzab 5y ago
  Humble has a huge organisation. Is it really needed for something that is supposed to be a charity-ish?
  - ATsch 5y ago
    It really isn't that anymore, especially not after having been bought by a billion dollar media/tech holdings company.
humbledbundled 5y ago
They launched as a cute side project created by a respected independent game developer that primarily generated revenue for charities through one-off bundle events. Their success with that model attracted blockbuster investment because of their high revenues… and then they tried to turn it into a business. The outcome we are seeing now was inevitable, it’s doubtful Humble would have ever seen success if it had started out this way. I have sympathy for the founders, this wasn’t their vision, but it was the likeliest outcome once they took on investment to diverge from what made them successful. Expect to see many more years of frantic and sometimes radical attempts to become a meaningful profit source for their new owners.
- xtracto 5y ago

Ekaros 5y ago

Overall the last year+ has been mess for Humble Choice what they call their subscription service. Pricing has been full of coupons, introductionary offers and so on. It is not really great confidence if you first offer year for reasonable discount that is 8-9$ a month. And then just after that give people 3 months at 6$ and repeat this. Also users who usually pause often seem to get 2-4$ off from the price... And in the end last month they in the end sold to some people the bundle for 2$... This really does not instil any type of loyalty... At least this change somewhat cleans up all that. But still it has been a mess.

stubish 5y ago

This seems to be the Trove only, which is a collection of games available to subscribers. Hopefully all the non-trove titles people have purchased over the years won't be disappearing (if they are, they should probably tell the purchasers!)

Ekaros 5y ago
At least the HiB 2 from over 10 years ago have still working download links. Not that it isn't apparent that Linux software distribution wasn't a mess back then...

999900000999 5y ago

End of an era... I'll have to see what happens though. The Humble Bundle goes out and finds some of the most unique experiences imo. Assuming they still hand out Steam keys, I'll still be a customer. The day I can only download games via another launcher, I'm done.

oversocialized 5y ago
Same - I run Linux exclusively and so far Steam Proton works great. If I have to use their launcher for games, I'm out.
- 999900000999 5y ago
  It feels oddly hostile, as in their intentionally trying to lock out Linux users. I imagine many of the bigger games, only run on Windows. But they should just communicate this, don't force people use a new application. Humble has given me some of my favorite game experiences so I'm going to give them a few months to sort themselves out

chris_wot 5y ago

Well, it was nice knowing you Humble.

creativemonkeys 5y ago

Since 2013, I've spent $1287.38 on bundles in Humble Bundle. This change doesn't seem to affect people like me, how primarily buy bundles, but my guard is up now.

Ekaros 5y ago
As a person with Classic sub and first purchase of HiB 2. It really doesn't effect me in anyway. Apart that I can finally just outright cancel my classic and move to pick up the interesting monthly bundles. I'm actually glad for new-subs that they get rid of horrible 20$ price point that no one sensible ended up using. Or should not have to with all the intro offers being shown all the time...

AltruisticGapHN 5y ago

Going Windows only for games nowadays seem short sighted, given the rise of SteamOS, incoming SteamDeck and the rumored Steam Console, Basically with increased Proton compatibility and ease of use from SteamOS... installing Linux instead of Windows sounds like a viable option for gaming. I don't even like Linux all that much myself, and am considering at least trying Steam OS on my PC once I get my SteamDeck.

sid-ant 5y ago
SteamDeck hasn't been released yet and it's coming to a limited number of countries, first. With the supply constraints, it's likely that it would take two or more years for SteamOS to have any noticeable market share. And, that is if SteamDeck is a success.
- throwaway946513 5y ago
  The market for the SteamDeck seems less around the 'Gaming PC' market - and more as a handheld pc. Essentially to bring the market accessibility of PC and 'desktop/laptop' games to a handheld factor. I don't dare take a laptop with me to work to play games on at lunch, but something the size of a Switch with my already existing library? Yes please! It feels like this is a good way to market the device for potential future plans where Valve could build other niche hardware that would improve the viability of Linux for gaming devices on other hardware.
samtheDamned 5y ago
On top of that, if it's really trying to get into the same market as Xbox Game Pass, and the Epic giveaways, wouldn't it make more sense to aim at supporting platforms that the xbox game pass/Prime Gaming/EGS giveaways aren't supporting? They're choosing to dump the 2 other major platforms that they would have next to 0 competition in, and focusing on the one major platform where they not only are competing on level ground with the likes of the EGS and Prime Gaming, they're going up against the biggest "games library as a service" offerings in the industry but , that also just happens to be the OS manufacturer as well, Xbox Game Pass. The service that's becoming pre-installed with newer windows builds, that's integrated tightly into the Microsoft ecosystem, and has a better library of both AAA and indie titles than humble bundle ever will.

cestith 5y ago

Humble's doing everything it can lately to make Itch more attractive. https://itch.io/ https://itch.io/

rookderby 5y ago

I had a spreadsheet of the bundles I grabbed back when this was about donating to charities and getting DRM-free software. (I think I've bought at least the first 10 bundles.) The further HB moved from those two goals, the more I lost interest. I even tried the subscription for a while, but it felt like the focus has changed to generating revenue for profit and not to raising funds for charity or giving users DRM-free software. At this point, it is more efficient to donate to a charity directly. [Edit: I guess it was always more efficient to donate to a charity directly, I meant now it is more efficient donate 95% to a charity and take the 5% or whatever to buy a DRM-free game and download it without a client at GOG, Itch, or other site.]

azalemeth 5y ago

One other thing kindly taken from the Ars comments [1] and expanded upon a bit: if anyone else would like to bulk-export their steam keys from this, go to https://www.humblebundle.com/home/keys https://www.humblebundle.com/home/keys and open the developer console and paste in: $('.keyfield-value').toArray().forEach((x) => x.click()) After redeeming the keys you can use the following to get an array of them: var myKeys = $('.unredeemed-keys-table tr').toArray().slice(1).map((tr) => [tr.getElementsByTagName('h4')[0].innerHTML, tr.getElementsByClassName('keyfield-value')[0].innerHTML]) var stringMe = ''; myKeys.forEach((element) => { stringMe=stringMe+(element[1])+","}); console.log(stringMe) Once you've got that, this greasemonkey script might be of interest to bulk-activate them [2] [1] https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2022/01/humble-subscription-service-is-dumping-mac-linux-access-in-18-days/?comments=1&post=40560852#comment-40560852 https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2022/01/humble-subscription-s... [2] https://github.com/Lutymane/Steam-Scripts/raw/master/Batch-Keys-Activator/Batch-Keys-Activator.user.js https://github.com/Lutymane/Steam-Scripts/raw/master/Batch-K...

azalemeth 5y ago
For some reason, the second block of code has stopped working for me as keyfield-value no longer has any visible innerHTML and it returns undefined. The following is a less elegant, but equally effective, way of doing the same thing: myString=''; myKeys=document.getElementsByClassName('keyfield-value'); for(ix=0; ix<myKeys.length; ix++){ myString = myString+ myKeys[ix].innerHTML)+"\n"; } console.log(myString)
smileybarry 5y ago
I wouldn't use a batch activator, I'm sure Valve has some anti-bot measure that will either throttle activations or lock your account. Better to import them into a password manager (or just a spreadsheet) and activate a specific game when you want to download it.

tzs 5y ago

OT: another site where you have until January 31, 2022 to download your purchases is Pottermore. They gave a lot more notice--the shutdown was announced in 2019. I somehow missed that, but they sent an email at the start of this year reminding users of it. Go to https://bookshelf.pottermore.com/ https://bookshelf.pottermore.com/ and enter your email. They will mail you a link to your bookshelf. Follow that link and you'll find all your books with download links to download DRM-free ePubs.

micromacrofoot 5y ago

What a strange saga.

sandworm101 5y ago

"Own & play your games forever" = BS. "Humble Bundle believes that accessibility is an ongoing effort, and we continually improve our web sites, services, and products in order to provide an optimal experience for all of our users and subscribers." Unless they own a Mac. "Award-winning indies, Humble Originals & classics all at your fingertips. Download from our 70+ DRM-free game library. New titles added every month!" DRM-free? But I have to run your launcher software? If I quacks like a duck it is DRM. "Your exclusive and sole remedy with respect to any Product that is not downloadable or able to be activated within a reasonable period will be either replacement of such Product, store credit or refund, as determined by Humble Bundle in its sole discretion." Ok. Per your terms of service statement. I will be wanting all my money back the moment I can no longer download my purchased software. "Accordingly, in the event that Humble Bundle changes any part of the Service or discontinues the Service, which Humble Bundle may do at its election, you acknowledge that you may no longer be able to use Products to the same extent as prior to such change or discontinuation, and that Humble Bundle shall have no liability to you in such case." Ok. Goodbye. You will no longer get any money from me. I'm very sure I can get the same games elsewhere. https://www.humblebundle.com/ https://www.humblebundle.com/ https://www.humblebundle.com/accessibility https://www.humblebundle.com/accessibility https://www.humblebundle.com/subscription https://www.humblebundle.com/subscription https://www.humblebundle.com/terms https://www.humblebundle.com/terms

dreamling 5y ago

I didn't see the links in here, and couldn't easily find it on the site, but did find the link in my email: Newsletter: https://blog.humblebundle.com/2022/01/11/humble-choice-is-leveling-up/?utm_source=Humble+Bundle+Newsletter https://blog.humblebundle.com/2022/01/11/humble-choice-is-le... Link to their FAQ on the change: https://support.humblebundle.com/hc/en-us/articles/4411127626139 https://support.humblebundle.com/hc/en-us/articles/441112762... Which games do I get to keep forever? https://support.humblebundle.com/hc/en-us/articles/4411127626139#forever https://support.humblebundle.com/hc/en-us/articles/441112762... "All Humble Choice members receive a selection of hand-picked games redeemable via a key for select platforms, when available (Steam, Epic, Origin, GOG, etc.). You can find these games at the Humble Choice Hub after unlocking the current month of Choice. Games in the Humble app for Windows PC, including the Humble Games Collection, are only available to active Humble Choice members. New Humble Choice games are available on the first Tuesday of every month." Which is good, because I have, ~20 pages of keys to redeem since I've been a long time humblebundler and usually only grabbed things as I was playing. I was worried I'd have to redeem them all before Feb, which doesn't sound like the case. So, business as usual for me? though it might be good to get most things I want redeemed over to steam fwiw. It does sound (from reading this thread) that Linux/Mac users who want their DRM free d/ls will need to grab them before the switchover.

thrower123 5y ago

I've never used their subscription service or their game store, but I did buy many bundles over the years. However, they made a UI change in the last year or so to remove the button that would register that you wanted to be reminded by email shortly before the bundle expires. Removing that button has reduced the amount of money I spend on HumbleBundles enormously.

btdmaster 5y ago

Just sent a request for account deletion (https://dsar.humblebundle.com/ https://dsar.humblebundle.com/). Itch.io is much better when it comes to Linux DRM-free games.

Shadonototra 5y ago

what a stupid move.. the only way to go is to boycott