Humble Bundle V Adds Braid, Meat Boy, Lone Survivor

It's arguable that the current Humble Indie Bundle is the best one yet. I'd argue it. I'm arguing it right now. But incredibly, it just got better. Added to Bastion, Superbrothers, Limbo, Psychonauts and Amnesia are Super Meat Boy, Braid, and bundle first-timer, Lone Survivor. Oh my goodness.

When speaking to Humble's Richard Esguerra earlier today, I took the chance to ask him about what difference these extras can make. You can see that below.

So if you've already paid for the bundle, you'll find those three games are added to your downloads. If you haven't, you'll need to pay over the average (currently just under $8) to get them included - along with Bastion - to the other four. Which is, well, the best offer ever. Eight bucks for eight of the finest indie games around? Cripes. I asked Richard all about this.

RPS: Those are some huge games you're adding in. This process must have come through experimentation. How has this worked out in the past?

Richard Esguerra: Pretty well. We're in a weird spot where we try to have it be a surprise, but if you've been paying attention it's probably not. I guess the anticipation now is what kind of content there is. But two weeks is a long time to run a sale, so I think it adds a little bit of extra fun, extra excitement to it. It also acts as a reminder, it's our way of reminding folks that there's this awesome thing going on. If you look at the pattern, the term we have for it is "Bundle within a bundle." It's usually stuff that we've bundled in the past, and it's also a way for us to - sometimes people miss a sale. So, this is a way for people who may have missed out on other promotions.

RPS: So if you've already bough this bundle, you'll get these three games added in.

Richard Esguerra: Yes, if you bought them prior to this second launch, they're yours automatically. For subsequent purchases, they're an added 'beat the average' incentive.

RPS: Is there any temptation to have it be so you only get the extra games if you up your payment to above the average?

Richard Esguerra: No, I don't think so. That's not been discussed as an option, but it has been communicated internally that that would be gross. It feels like a bait and switch, you get penalised for buying earlier. That doesn't make any sense for customers. If there's anything that we're super-rabid about, it's about gamers - it's about the gamers' experience, about how awesome the experience of participating in a bundle is. Getting to pay what you want, getting to choose where the money goes. We want all that to be as awesome as possible, so we really try to avoid experiences where people will feel like, "Oh, why did I buy this when I did."