Dujanah‘s stretches of desert beg for contemplation, as do its myriad events. Following a woman searching for her missing family in a land under the thumb of an intervening force, it leaves the player to question the events and words that unfold, all while trying to find those missing loved ones when they can’t help but feel that they don’t want to know the realities of what happened to them.
Dujanah casts the player out into a world of clay and hand-drawn art, humor and darkness and the surreal blending seamlessly into an adventure where meaning is found in roaming. Narrative events can occur at random, sprinkled throughout the world through run-ins with various people, creatures, and events as you struggle to find your family. Absurd moments can make the player laugh moments before an empty room promises an unknown dread, followed by developer King-Spooner teasing Let’s Players with his own Let’s Play of his own game as it’s played.
Dujanah is a meditation on revenge, but also on how we deal with tragedy, how ridiculous our existences become, justifications of the horrible actions we take, and the delirious fear that infuses world politics and events. It’s a journey through a thoughtful space that encourages players think on it, offering helpful laughter and withering criticism within footsteps of one another. It’s a captivating experience, once more captured by King-Spooner’s wonderful work in clay, music, narrative, humor, and art.
Dujanah is available for $ 8.99 on Itch.io and Steam. For more information on the game and developer Jack King-Spooner, you can head to the developer’s site or follow them on YouTube and Twitter.
