Charity bundles on Itch have become a regular part of the indie game ecosystem. These bundles are usually one-offs, organized by different people in response to natural disasters, mutual aid requests, battles against human rights abuses, and other crises that spring up moment-to-moment.
Every charity bundle of its kind is important, but rarely will there ever be a follow-up bundle under the same name or working towards the specific goal. In contrast, the Solo But Not Alone bundle has returned for its fifth year, still with the goal of assisting mental health charities.
Cat McDonald of Peach Garden Games has been organizing the Solo But Not Alone bundles since 2021. Each bundle’s primary appeal, in terms of the games they offer, is a wide variety of new single-player tabletop roleplaying games. Each game is designed to be played completely alone or has options benefitting solo play.
The bundle’s focus on single-player games promises that every game is an opportunity to take your mind off the struggles you might be facing on a daily basis. “That’s right, no need to schedule, no need to get a group together. Games you can play by yourself whenever the mood strikes,” the description from the first Solo But Not Alone explains.
The bundle has always benefitted mental health charities, originally going towards Jasper’s Game Day for its first three bundles before switching to Take This with 2024’s bundle. Take This’s focus is on destigmatizing mental health and providing support to those in the gaming industry. This follows a difficult time at the charity as Take This faced a budget crisis in 2024.
Blog posts from the charity in August 2024 announced a danger of closing without securing $80,000 in funding, but follow-up posts in late October indicated that they’d surpassed their funding goal and were shifting to new leadership. Take This has pressed ahead into the new year, still providing its various programs, workshops, and resources.
In a statement about Solo But Not Alone 5 with Rascal, Cat McDonald explained the importance of assisting organizations like Take This beyond initiatives like charity bundles, saying, “Drives help [organizations] stay open, and I’m glad to play a role in that, but community support is so much bigger than just charity fundraisers.”
In the same response, she also addressed Take This’s recent funding issues, looking to the future by saying, “every dollar we raise is one they didn’t have before.” Each previous Solo But Not Alone bundle has raised over $20,000, and the fifth is on track to hopefully reach the same heights.
In terms of games, each bundle carries a unique selection, never including games found in previous years’ bundles. This year’s bundles features some incredible titles, including Runecairn Wardensaga, Hit The Road, Jack, ANY%: Tarot-Fueled Speedrunning Action, Radio Broadcast at the End of the World, and many others. This year’s features 107 games in total.
Solo But Not Alone 5 will be up for sale until May, with a price of only $10.
