#dinkum

Here's my list of games I enjoyed in 2025:

Avowed

Cinnabunny

Wyrmhall

Wanderstop

South of Midnight

Loco Moto

Dinkum

Trash Goblin

Elden Ring Nightreign

Grimshire

As you set forth on this land inhabited by Kangaroo, Emu and Crocodiles, you’re expected to tame the land by learning how to farm and hunt, and work on building a settlement. But don’t worry, there’s nobody else here – so it’s all territory for you to claim. That being said, on the land that is being settled, you will eventually find remnants of the past indicating the post-apocalyptic nature of the game. You can dig up things from the ‘modern Australia’, yet this presents an even larger issue to me: The only artefacts of the past are of the colonised Australia with no reference to First Nations People? Also, suggesting that the world’s longest-living culture could not survive a capitalist apocalypse? It all feels so wrong.

In its premise, Dinkum presents ‘terra nullius’. Terra nullius means ‘nobody’s land’ and was a term used by the British to justify the colonisation and settlement of what would become known as Australia. Terra Nullius was not only used as justification for colonisation, but also justified the British beginning 200+ years of genocide: Hunting parties were organised to hunt and kill Indigenous People; massacres were officially registered and conducted; children were stolen; enslavement and blackbirding were prevalent. These are just a few reasons why even the suggestion of Terra Nullius is a big deal. Dinkum starts with this. This fictionalised view of Australia is empty, belonging to no one, and free to be settled by you.

Yeah, this kind of sums up my feelings on it. As a non-Australian, the game feels distinctively Anglo-Australian; it's everything that non-Aussie tourists think of when they think 'Australia', and a few things they don't, but all of it is distinctively white*. I feel like the dev was trying to avoid potential mistakes by not depicting Aboriginal peoples in any way--he basically says as much, quoted in the article--but unfortunately he's just... erased them, instead. Which is arguably worse:

1. When making a game set in Australia, whether a fictionalised version or not, you cannot erase First Nations Peoples. They are the First Peoples of Australia, meaning they are integral to the history, culture, and identity of the country. Erasing them perpetuates the lie of Terra Nullius. (...) 3. Any game made on Australian land – stolen land – can and should acknowledge First Nations People, similar to how Untitled Goose Game makes reference to First Nations People in the credits. This is a simple gesture, but goes a long way in terms of acknowledgement and respect.

(*as an aside, whiteness in Australia is not the same as whiteness in the USA. See this post by dead-generations for more info on that; it's an interesting post and worth a read.)

Tried to build a house facade...Hhmmm... >_>