Fuzzy Ghost, the award-winning Sydney-based developer, today revealed a new trailer for its next game Janet DeMornay is a Slumlord (and a witch) [JDM] launching on Steam later this year. Ahead of the launch, Fuzzy Ghost, which also created indie game Queer Man Peering Into A Rock Pool.jpg, is hosting a competition to source real-life rental horror stories to be featured in JDM, which can be submitted here. Submissions close on 25 March 2023, and those chosen to be featured in the game will receive a free copy of the game (as well as some quiet revenge on their landlords).

“We wanted to make a horror game, so we asked ourselves: In Australia in the 2020s, what’s something that’s truly terrifying? To be honest the answer came pretty quickly—being a renter,” said Scott Ford, co-founder of Fuzzy Ghost and experienced renter in Sydney’s inner west. “JDM is a horror comedy about renting, and it feels like everyone we know has had a rental experience that’s horrible, or hilarious or both. We wanted to share their stories, as well as our own. Just have a great big bitch session, really. But in a game. And with witches.”

Successful stories will be featured in collectible Case Files hidden throughout the game’s world. The newly released trailer reveals some of the mystical puzzles the players will encounter. Akin to Resident Evil and Silent Hill, these puzzles reward players’ familiarity with their space and rely on how players interact with their new home.

Inspired by irreverent horror-comedy classics including Beetlejuice and Poltergeist, JDM sees you play as Andrew who has signed a new lease to an enchanted but crumbling queer terrace house in Sydney. The catch is, your house has been transported to another dimension. Using unique puzzle mechanics, players will explore their home and try to get back to the real world, as their faded television shopping channel star landlord (and witch) Janet DeMornay becomes increasingly menacing.

JDM follows the success of Fuzzy Ghost’s most recent indie title, Queer Man Peering Into a Rock Pool.jpg, which won the 2022 Australian Game Developer Award for Excellence in Emerging Games. The game was acquired by the Australian Powerhouse Museum to be part of their permanent collection and is currently being featured in the Absolutely Queer exhibition for WorldPride 2023. It is also nominated for an IGF Award. Both titles share a glimpse into the lives of queer individuals as they navigate the world around them. 

“JDM is a ridiculous but horrifyingly relevant story about found-family, queer lives, and landlord overreach,” says co-founder Pete Foley.

Janet DeMornay is a Slumlord (and a witch) will launch in late 2023 and will be available via Steam.