Here’s a cool indie game taking on a cool setting. Indie developer Lunacy Studios will be launching their debut title The House Of Hikmah later this April.
In the House Of Hikmah, you play as 14-year-old Maya looking for answers after her father’s passing. She ends up in the titular House Of Wisdom (Bait Al Hikmah, Baitul Hikmah) where she finds endless wonders and a cast of historical scholars that all help her in her journey.
The House Of Hikmah has two draws: one is its physics-based puzzles that will tease the brain of any scholar. The other is the cast of historical scholars. The scholars, and the House Of Wisdom itself, are all real history that’s part of the Abbasid caliphate, also known as the Islamic Golden Age, the same setting of Assassin’s Creed Mirage. But it’s all presented with a bit of whimsy and mystical air to it. And a soundtrack composed by Austin Wintory of Sword Of The Sea and Journey fame.
Some of the scholars you’ll meet in The House Of Hikmah includes Ibn Sina, Ismail al-Jazari, Fatima al-Fihri and Ibn Hayyan.
Speaking of Assassin’s Creed Mirage, the game has full voice acting both in English and Arabic. The game is fully localised in Arabic text as well.
“We want to create a universally relatable story representing the difficult yet hopeful journey through grief”, said Faris Attieh, Creative Director, Lunacy Studios. “One of the ways we’ve achieved this is through Maya’s many interactions with the scholars. Their inclusion gave us not only an opportunity to showcase how her father’s life and his lessons had a significant impact on those around him, but it also enabled us to create representation for the Islamic Golden Age which has never been seen before in games.”
Depiction of Islamic and/or Middle Eastern culture is still a rarity in video games, so it’s cool to see game like The House Of Hikmah existing. At the very least, one could appreciate the sick geometric patterns prevalent in Islamic architecture, which you do see depicted in the game.
The House Of Hikmah opens its doors on April 8 on PC (Steam). A demo is available.