Interview with “Dinkum” Developer James Bendon
Aussie-made RPG, survival, sandbox game Dinkum has recently arrived on the Switch 2, bringing a host of performance improvements alongside a fresh lick of paint. It’s a game I had a hard time putting down, whether I was relaxing by the fireplace in my outback cottage or getting stuck into everything it has to offer. I enjoyed it so much that I awarded it a 90 out of 100 and gave it What’s It Like Certified Exceptional status. Even now, I’m still spending my downtime in this world, working the farmlands and building up my outback town. So, I reached out to the developer behind Dinkum, James Bendon, to find out how it all came together, and thankfully, he’s a deadset legend and was more than happy to have a yarn.
How did the idea for Dinkum come about?
Life sims and sandbox games have always been my favourite genres. So after leaving my job to move states back in 2017, I asked my wife if I could try and make a videogame for a year. (It ended up taking much longer)
I think the long drive through the centre of Queensland down to the Central Tablelands of New South Wales really inspired me. I had a prototype with green trees and grass, but after that drive I changed the grass to be a bit more dried out and swapped the trees for white Gum Trees.
I couldn’t remember seeing a game that looked like the little bush town I’d grown up in. So I started adding old miners’ cottages with tin roofs, metal windmills and water tanks. All the things that reminded me of my childhood out in the bush. Once I added the Kangaroos and watched them bounce around, I felt like there was something there and I kept going.
When creating Dinkum, did you think it would become as big as it has?
Not a chance. I’m completely self taught and Dinkum is my first released game. I doubted I would break even on the four years of development leading up to the early access release. My dream was that Dinkum would sell enough copies so I could continue to work in game development once it was out of early access.
Dinkum is often referred to as “Aussie Animal Crossing” by many players. Are you happy with this comparison? and do you think it helped Dinkum’s popularity?
The Animal Crossing series would have to be one of my most beloved video game series. When I started working, it was definitely an inspiration for some of the general mechanics. I love how some of the basic interactions in Animal Crossing don’t feel “video gamey”. Things like the shops actually have the items laid out on tables and not hidden in a nebulous menu, I really love that feeling.
While I do think the comparison might have helped, I feel like I’ve included enough differences and additions to Dinkum to make it feel like its own thing.
There are so many amazing nods to Australian culture in Dinkum, from the NPC’s right down to the items and foods you craft. During development, did you ever have doubts about whether these would land for international audiences?
I think I actually underestimated how foreign some of the Australiana would feel to international players. I think some of the success of Dinkum comes from that unfamiliarity, kind of like digital tourism or something like that.
Even though the game is set in a heightened, fantastical world, based on Australia, all the mundane plants, animals and references to us Aussies ended up feeling quite exotic to some. Like the game had placed them on an alien world, and they had to learn the rules to live there. I love it when games give that feeling to players, so it was nice to see some players experience that.
Speaking of Aussie culture, how difficult was it to include Dagwood Dogs as a consumable but not include Pluto Pups? Any Regrets?
Wait, is this an Aussie state thing? Growing up in North Queensland, I’m pretty sure that’s what they would be called when the Show visited town. I know there was a bit of a state divide with the name I chose for “Parmy and Chips” too. (Who calls it a Parma?)
Dinkum spent some time in early access on Steam before the full release. Did player feedback alter the course of development or shape any new gameplay features?
Definitely, the players are so good at identifying what the game is missing and what the game needs. I’ve tried to incorporate a lot of player feedback throughout development, and I still do. The challenge comes from making sure that their suggestions are implemented in a way that stays true to what I think Dinkum is and should be. But it’s a lot of fun to read suggestions; it really gets me inspired.
Were there any specific challenges when bringing Dinkum to the original Switch?
I had a lot of help in that regard, thanks to Krafton and 5MinLab. The people who worked on the port did some real magic, in my opinion. I started developing Dinkum the same year the Switch was released, and when Dinkum finally made it to the platform, it was already 8 years old.
Some compromises had to be made to the game’s visuals and other considerations to the control scheme, but the team did a great job keeping all the gameplay intact.
To follow up on that, was it a smoother process to bring Dinkum to the Switch 2 with the groundwork done for the Switch 1 version?
I had seen an early build of the Switch 2 version not long after the Switch 2 was released, but it wasn’t ready. I know the team worked hard on the Switch 2 version, and it wasn’t as easy as flipping some toggles to get it working. It took them a few months to get the Switch 2 version out to players.
Do you have any words of encouragement for any Aussie Devs out there?
I’ve had the pleasure of meeting a great group of Aussie devs. There is a lot happening in the indie space, especially. I don’t feel like I have any particular expertise to pass on, but I’ll always encourage people to make new and exciting things. It’s probably cliché, but I believe if you make a game you really want to play, there is a high chance that there will be other people out there who want to play it.
What’s next for Dinkum and James Bendon?
For now, I’m continuing to offer updates to Dinkum. I feel like as long as there are passionate players, it will be hard to let it go.
That being said, it has been nice to play around with some other smaller projects and prototypes in my spare time. Going back and starting a game from scratch is a lot harder than adding to an existing game, so it’s been fun to experience that again.
Finally, what’s your favourite Aussie saying?
There is a lot of great Aussie slang that isn’t really PG and so I couldn’t include in Dinkum. Having said that, I don’t think you can really beat “G’day”. I’m also a fan of our laid-back sort of slang like “No worries”.
James Bendon, you’re a true blue legend, mate. Thank you for taking the time to have a chat with us about Dinkum and game development.
For those who want to take a gander at Dinkum, you can get it on the Switch 2 here – https://ec.nintendo.com/AU/en/titles/70010000123839, and it’s also available as a free upgrade for owners of the Switch 1 version.
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