The new Day of the Devs Bundle looks pretty good- and for once all the games come with DRM-free versions! But recent experience tought me that Humble is not always to be trusted about those versions of their games. So, before I even consider buying anything (I'm supposed to be working towards zeroing my backlog, dammit!), I have to ask- does anyone here own Massive Chalice, Day of the Tentacle and Oxenfree on Humble? Are the DRM-free versions working as they should?

I got Massive Chalice on there, and the DRM-free copy downloaded and worked fine for me!

A post in the Gaming Deals thread suggests that the DRM-free Oxenfree in the bundle is the GOG version (Humble doesn't usually offer a DRM-free installer for this game outside of the bundle).

Wait...if it's a GOG version of it on Humble, then...why is it on sale for a way more expensive price here on GOG currently? O_o

Exactly. :/

Just curious, could you please elaborate?

They don't always work, for various reasons. Humble support can take a long time to get back to you and isn't always helpful.

Their definition of DRM-Free may differ from your definition of DRM-Free. There was a "DRM-Free" Mobile Bundle a while back which required you to use their client in order to download the games.

https://www.gog.com/forum/general/humble_mobile_bundle/post276

Their DRM-free version of Deadly Premonition was basically broken and incomplete (it was some 700mb or so and the GOG version is over 5 GB :P) and instead of being repaired it was simply removed from the store... and the libraries of people who bought it.

Sounds more like a few bad cases instead of a generalized broken store.

It is, but it's still better to be safe than sorry. Makes sense he'd want to be cautious.

Yeah, they're pretty sneaky with that shit. I had Awesomenauts when it first appeared there and it was DRM Free. The game received updates for a little while then they stopped for a long time. I asked the dev directly what the go was and they told me basically that the game is meant to be enjoyed on the network, which the DRM Free version does not provide bla bla. They said the only way I'd be able to enjoy the game properly is to consider using my Steam key.

A couple weeks after that conversation the option to buy the game DRM Free + Steam went Steam exclusive... and then the game just magically disappeared from my library.

To your OP though, I had Massive Chalice and it's fine. Other games I've bought have had issues though....but that's Humble for ya.

I beg to differ, as I've had numerous instances of non-working titles or ones that were just leagues out of date. Their DRM Free store is a joke.

Then it would be more useful to make up a thread listing the problematic DRM-free versions on the store (with the details for each) so people would be more aware.

Naturally, if such thread already exist (damn GOG and its messy forum), I would like the link ;)

I know it would be more useful. Problems is, nobody seems to pay attention to threads I make; so I'll just donate anything if I ever come across it again, to whoever makes such a thread.
Another problem is that I refund said games... so I can't really remember which ones they are because they're not in the library haha! Yes believe it or not, Humble is nice enough to refund if you don't use the steam key.

The thing about Humble is that they have a totally hands-free attitude and approach towards what they host. Devs can upload whatever they want to users' libraries withouth any kind of supervision on Humble's part. This means that some trollish dev could even distribute viruses or malware with the DRM-free copies of their games.

Now, I don't expect any dev who wants to keep making a living with videogames to do that, but of course unintentionally broken or non-functional DRM-free copies get frequently uploaded to Humble. I'm sure this happens more often with Linux and Mac versions that have been produced by pushing the 'Export' button of the engine of choice and have never been tested, but as it seems Windows builds aren't safe either.

Considering that Humble's support is slower than an asthmatic ant with heavy shopping, and when they finally get back to you they usually pass on the complaint to the dev/publisher, what I do now is skipping Humble entirely and contacting the devs straight away. Since they can update DRM-free builds themselves at any time, they can usually fix the problem way before Humble support would even reply to your ticket.

To clarify, I'm talking exclusively about indie devs, but my experiences with them have been satisfactory for the most part. I'm not sure AA and AAA devs/publishers would be as nice and as eager to fix whatever problem there is, though...