Humble Bundle Turns Charity Sliders Back On After Backlash

In April, Humble Bundle made a controversial decision to remove sliders from its game listing, which previously gave people the option to decide where their money was going--to Humble itself, to developers, or to charity. It was replaced by a few set amounts for charity, but the store has decided to reverse this decision after receiving feedback.

"We recently announced our initial plan for redesigned bundle pages which no longer include sliders that let customers fully control what percentage of their order went to Humble Bundle, charity, and publishers/developers," the company said in a blog post. "We've heard everyone loud and clear and apologize for the way these changes were rolled out. We are now taking a moment to pause, collect constructive feedback, and be more transparent about the path forward."

That feedback included some criticism from big-name developers. Thomas Was Alone and John Wick Hex designer Mike Bithell was one of them, calling the full charity donations "the defining feature of their platform."

A new Humble store design will be coming out within a few weeks, and it will retain the sliders. More changes to how charity splits work may come later on, as will new ways to "incorporate charity into other parts of the user experience."

Humble Bundle's "pay what you want" structure lets users choose their own price for games, with certain thresholds unlocking additional games or bonuses. The removal of the sliders seemed like an odd decision, and customers' voices were clearly heard.