It was a prescribed, controlled model where console manufacturers - be they the now absent Sega and Amiga or lasting heavyweights such as Nintendo and Sony - dictated the terms and enjoyed the power.
Of course, the advent of iOS and Android platforms on smartphones and tablets, as well as other examples such as the ubiquitous Steam on PC, have gradually changed the rules.
Many of the barriers are lowered or, in some cases, almost non-existent, and small development studios are in a position to self-publish and potentially reach tens of millions of gamers; that in itself would have seemed inconceivable a decade ago.
And yet it's not just the battle-hardened publishing practices of console manufacturers that are being summarily disrupted. Even indie developers may be casting glances at a newer publishing model to invade our various devices the Humble Bundle.
No platform ignored
The origins of the Humble Bundle initially known solely as the Humble Indie Bundle require an acknowledgement of 2D Boy's World of Goo, which offered a "pay what you want" period in celebration of its first anniversary on PC, while the download was notably DRM (Digital Rights Management) free.
With "cracking" of PC games so prevalent, it was a scheme that entrusted gamers to make an honest purchase.
World of Goo
Adam Saltsman is the co-founder of Semi Secret Software and the creator of endless-runner Canabalt, which made its Android debut on the second bundle dedicated to the Google platform.
In his view, 2D Boy's bold move did indeed fire the starting gun, serving both as a method to challenge piracy as well as a celebration of publishing freedom.
"I think Humble Bundle really originally came from this perspective of 'we have a theory about why people pirate games, and we want to try this experiment' - but it became a really amazing thing, commercially speaking," says Saltsman.
"I think World of Goo was maybe the first indie game to do a really high profile game sale that was 'pay what you want' for a DRM-free game, and they had great success, so it wasn't necessarily unheard of... but those first Humble Bundles really blew up and impressed people."
The Humble Bundle promotions have a clear focus on being DRM-free and accommodating almost any conceivable open platform.
The main series of numbered bundles support Windows PC, Mac OS X, Linux and often specific distribution platforms such as Steam, while the Android bundles to date have broadened the remit further to also include smartphones and tablets.
This naturally attracts developers of various sizes that are keen to release their titles on a variety of devices.
One of these developers is 11 bit studios, which has a stated goal to reach audiences regardless of their platform of choice, which made it an ideal fit with the first Android Humble Bundle.
Senior writer for the developer, Pawel Miechowski, explains how the company's philosophy was matched by vital support from the Humble Bundle organisation:
"All the versions [of Anomaly: Warzone Earth] with no exception were made by 11 bit studios, as put simply our engine is capable of creating cross-platform builds," says Miechowski.
"Then the Humble Bundle team helped us in QA testing and provided valuable feedback about compatibility with different Android devices and different Linux PCs. Then we've fixed as many bugs as possible through a few iterations until us and HIB guys decided we have builds ready for distribution."
Anomaly: Warzone Earth
In fact, the commitment to bring these games to Linux is extensively supported by the Humble Bundle team, now part of a specific company dedicated to the enterprise the first bundle was run by Wolfire Games, before the scale of the project's success prompted the formation of a new start-up.
Saltsman describes the Humble Bundle Linux team as a "legion of amazing testers", offering detailed but rapid-fire QA information.
Working together for mutual success
On the surface, inviting gamers to pay whatever they want for a stack of games, all at once, could be theorised as an act of self-destruction. Yet the evidence of the Humble Bundle's successes shows that such concerns were misguided.
Likewise, as a publishing model, it may seem peculiar for developers of various sizes to willingly submit their brands into a group identity, yet the issue doesn't seem to concern those that have participated.
It's clear that the individual companies involved see a benefit in terms of profile and financial return.
Shan Poon, who deals with marketing concerns for Toki Tori developer Two Tribes, saw only positives in exposure and financial return.
"It's great, you will get a lot more exposure," argues Poon.
"You are also able to get your games to a group which you haven't reached before. In financial returns, let's just say that we are satisfied with the results."
Toki Tori
Miechowski agrees, referring to accessing more sales channels and regarding participation as a "really good business decision".
Saltsman, for whom Canabalt was originally a free Flash game on PC, is more succinct on the benefits he experienced from participating in the promotion: "it's basically just a big pile of free money."
Uniquely, however, the size of that pile of money is ultimately down to consumers, with purchases split between three groups: developers, Humble Bundle, and a selected charity.
Not only are gamers choosing how much to pay but are also determining in their own mind who deserves the most money from their purchase. It provides an interesting angle on the value gamers place on each stage of the video game publishing chain.
Miechowski believes that including a charitable donation with each purchase actively encourages buyers and adds a feel-good factor:
"It makes all people involved in it feel that this is something more than just a games pack. At least I hope they do. I mean, I think people know that there's a ton of work that has to be done before they can get a bunch of games for a couple of dollars, and everybody is OK when this work pays off and a substantial part of the money goes for charity."
Adam Saltsman agrees, but believes the recent THQ bundle somewhat blurred the lines of the project's mission statement - even though other publishers such as Frozenbyte and Mojang have had bundles or new releases exclusive to the platform.
Unlike examples such as the Android bundles, which opened the project to smartphone and tablet gamers, THQ's offering was limited to PC, via a steam key.
Saltsman, despite his participation in an Android Bundle that saw his game go from the smallest screens and onto operating systems such as Linux, believes that good deeds outweigh idealistic hopes of maintaining the 'Indie' angle of the bundle.
"I'm inclined to agree with David Rosen of Wolfire on most points regarding that controversy - yeah, it's lame that it is Windows and Steam - especially as a Mac user myself - but it also has the potential to expand the otherwise-entirely-indie audience for Humble Bundles, which is important in the long term; they did still raise a pretty absurd amount of money for charity."
From PC to Android, and beyond
What started as a seemingly rebellious publishing idea to join forces to distribute indie PC/Mac/Linux games has expanded to encompass the ever-expanding Android market: four bundles dedicated to the Google platform and counting.
It's also starting to move beyond its indie gaming roots to explore alternative content, including eBook and music bundles, while Indie Game: The Movie has also been included in a high-profile main-series bundle.
Canabalt
The Humble Bundle is the original and top of the class, though it has inspired other similar projects such as Indie Royale, as well as niche groups such as Humble Brony Bundle.
It's a distribution model that, when the quality is right, earns impressive results. Major bundles, including the Android versions, often approach or exceed well over $1 million in revenue, while the THQ bundle raised over $5 million.
With consideration of - at the time of writing - combined charitable donations of over $10 million, it's clear that this phenomenon is becoming increasingly viable not only for the smallest of publishers, but also industry veterans familiar with standard publishing models.
It's a model that incentivises, not only with charitable causes but incremental additions of titles for those who pay above the "average" donation, which is still typically well below the retail rate for the material.
Its venture into tablets and smartphones won't necessarily strike fear into Apple or Google's app stores, with the former so far untouched with the exception of Mac OS X versions of games, but it may make a number of publishers and developers think about their respective multi-platform approaches.
The Humble Bundle's games gain a new identity away from the noise of their respective marketplaces, and the continuing challenges in the industry mean that almost any development studio or multimedia may have a new way to reach its audience, on practically any device open to the concept.
It can be argued that, in its own way, Humble Bundle is throwing another potentially major publishing and distribution model into the mix. Speaking ahead of the THQ bundle, Shan Poon made a prescient comment about its potential impact.
"It will not only sell great, but it will definitely give another perspective for customers and developers."
