For years, Humble Bundle stood as a beacon for gamers seeking quality titles at charitable prices. Its monthly Humble Choice subscription, offering a curated selection of games for a fixed fee while supporting good causes, cultivated immense loyalty. But that loyalty is being severely tested today as the company confirms its second significant price increase in under two years, coupled with a controversial forced integration of IGN content, leaving its community reeling and questioning the service's future direction.
The Numbers Bite: Starting with the May 2025 bundle (billed in early May), Humble Choice pricing jumps across all tiers:
- Basic (1 Game Choice): Rises from $8.99 to $10.99/month
- Standard (3 Game Choices): Rises from $11.99 to $13.99/month
- Premium (All Games + Store Discount): Rises from $14.99 to $16.99/month
This follows a previous increase in late 2023, meaning the Premium tier, for example, has surged nearly 36% in roughly 18 months. For budget-conscious gamers who flocked to Humble for its value proposition, this latest hike is a bitter pill. "It's death by a thousand cuts," lamented one user on ResetEra. "First the Trove gets gutted, then the first price hike, and now this... the value just isn't there like it used to be."
Humble Choice Price Hike and a Forced Inclusion of IGN - Page 4 - ResetEra
The IGN Forced Bundle: Adding Insult to Injury
Compounding the price increase anger is a mandatory new addition: IGN content. Subscribers across all tiers will now automatically receive access to "IGN Plus," described as including ad-free browsing on IGN.com, exclusive editorial content, and early access to some videos. Crucially, this is not an opt-in perk; it's bundled into the subscription cost whether users want it or not.
The reaction to this has been overwhelmingly negative within the gaming community:
- "Who asked for this?" is a common refrain across forums and social media.
- Many subscribers see zero value in IGN Plus, viewing it as irrelevant to their primary reason for subscribing: games.
- There's a palpable sense that subscribers are being forced to subsidize IGN (which acquired Humble Bundle in 2017) through their game subscription fees. "So we're paying more, partly to cover ad-free IGN for everyone? Hard pass," tweeted a prominent deal account, Wario64, capturing the sentiment.
Humble Choice Bundle Price Hike From May 2025 - TwistedVoxel
Community Backlash and Cancellation Wave
The announcement, initially spotted through subscriber emails and later confirmed via Humble's official channels, has ignited a firestorm:
- ResetEra, Reddit (/r/humblebundles), and Twitter are flooded with posts expressing disappointment, anger, and screenshots of cancellation confirmations.
- Memes mocking the IGN inclusion and the diminishing returns of the subscription are spreading rapidly.
- Long-time subscribers, including some dating back to the original Humble Monthly days, are vocal about feeling the core appeal – great games at a great price supporting charity – has been irrevocably eroded. "The charity angle feels like an afterthought now, just a fig leaf for corporate price gouging," commented another ResetEra user.
- The lack of communication regarding why this specific bundle of IGN content justifies the price increase, beyond vague statements about "enhanced value," is fueling distrust.
Wario64 on X (Twitter) - Humble Choice Price Increase Announcement
Can Humble Recover?
This double whammy of a price hike and unwanted bundled content arrives at a time when competition in the game subscription and bundle space is fierce. Services like Fanatical's offerings, itch.io bundles, and even the sheer volume of deep discounts on major storefronts give consumers plenty of alternatives.
Humble Bundle built its reputation on community goodwill, transparency, and undeniable value. The past few years, marked by the IGN acquisition, changes to the Trove, and repeated price increases, have steadily chipped away at that foundation. This latest move feels to many like a decisive break from the principles that made Humble beloved.
The Bottom Line: The May 2025 Humble Choice price increase is more than just a few extra dollars; it's a significant jump coming swiftly after the last one. Coupled with the forced inclusion of IGN Plus – perceived by the core subscriber base as low-value bloat – it represents a fundamental shift away from the service's original value proposition. The wave of cancellations and vocal community backlash indicates Humble Bundle risks alienating the very audience that sustained it. Whether this strategy attracts enough new subscribers interested in an IGN-Humble hybrid to offset the losses, or whether it marks a turning point towards irrelevance for the once-essential service, remains to be seen. For now, the mood among long-time fans is one of profound disappointment and resignation.
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