Unpacking is a fun, pixel-art puzzle video game developed by the Austrailian indie studio, Witch Beam, and published by Humble Games in 2021. This popular, cozy game is about the familiar experience of pulling possessions out of boxes and fitting them into a new home as you explore domestic environments with all their nooks and crannies, stacking plates, hanging towels, and arranging books on shelves.
Taking only 3 years to produce, Unpacking is the culmination of the work of Wren Brier and Tim Dawson along with talented contractors. The pixel art for the video game Unpacking was created by lead pixel artist Angus Doolan and pixel artist Michelle Whitehead, under the guidance of creative director Wren Brier. Tim Dawson, Wren Brier's partner, was the Techinical Director and primary programmer on the game. Tim is also an artist which helped in the collaboration on artwork and animation. In an interview, Wren mentioned that,
"...it was a huge help that my partner Tim who did all of the coding is actually an artist originally, meaning he was very good about taking into account artistic considerations when doing the implementation."
The game was inspired by the experience the two had when Tim moved in with her. In the r/GirlGamers Reddit thread by the creative director, Wren Brier says,
"The idea for the game came about when my partner Tim moved in with me :) We were unpacking his stuff and there was something game-like about the process -- finishing unpacking a box to "unlock" the box underneath, completing sets of items, etc."
"...It was always our intention to tell the story solely through the characters' items. I was looking around the house as we were unpacking and thinking how much you could tell about Tim and me from the items in our home!"
The game tells the life story of an unnamed female protagonist over several years, 1997 to 2018, by having you unpack her belongings during various house moves.
There are 8 moving experiences each with familiar spaces like the bedroom, bathroom, living room, office. Overall there are 35 rooms. As you complete each experience, you can take photos of your work and save them in scrapbooks. Each level has some hidden secrets when placing an item in a peculiar or perfect spot – doing so will reward the player with a sticker and an achievement. These stickers can be used in the game’s photo mode
Each level tasks the player with taking a series of boxes and emptying their contents, positioning them one-by-one in appropriate places around each room. During the level you’ll be given the freedom to place items wherever you wish, but upon finishing the unpacking of all the boxes, you will be prompted if any of the items are not in the right place. I can't tell if I like this aspect of the game or not. In one way it adds a feeling of accomplishment to see if you guessed where items belong correctly. It is also annoying to find out the time you put into unboxing and placing items may have been wasted. Misplaced objects receive a red outline once boxes are emptied, signaling that items need a more logical or correct home.
As someone who has moved a lot, I can relate to how meaningful yet simple act of unpacking boxes and placing items a new place can be. Your items tell your story, mark your territory and remind you of the past. I've also done move-outs as a cleaning lady. Let's just say there are some interesting stories out there.
Accessibility is a big part of the game's design. Unpacking is a cognitive accessible game because it has no time limits or penalties for missteps. When I've had a stressful day, playing a game like this is perfect. Text is minimal and reading is not required to enjoy the game and to be able to complete it. Even though the game relies mainly on visual environmental storytelling, it still supports 15 other languages in addition to English. Beyond language and reading comprehension barriers, Unpacking meets many of the video game industry’s gold standards for accessibility: fully mappable controls, adjustable zoom levels, and no timers. In an interview,
‘A lot of the features ended up being kind of like a curb cut (those little slopes built into curbs were originally cut in for wheelchair users), but they’re usable by people with shopping trolleys, prams, bikes,’ Dawson said. ‘It’s the example of an affordance for someone with a specific disability that ends up actually just having general utility for everyone." ([6] https://www.gameshub.com/news/features/the-making-of-unpacking-from-bullet-hell-to-domestic-heaven-6597/)
Reward for its accessibility efforts, Unpacking received in 2021 the award in "Excellence in Accessibility" at the Australian Game Developers Awards (AGDAs).
The game design is charming, vibrant pixel-art dioramas packed with meticulous details. tunes from Canadian-Australian composer, Jeff Van Dyck, that set the mood for the rest of the game. For example, picking up and placing every single item in the game is accompanied by a unique sound effect depending on the object and surface on which it is placed. I didn't notice the plethora of sounds in the game since I was so focused on placing things just right. Everything at first just sounded like a "thumb" or "smack" sound. Playing the game now, again, I can hear in addition to the put down sounds are unique sounds. In fact, the sound design includes over 14,000 foley effects, with multiple pick-up and placement sound effects unique to each item. Game contains over 1,000 unique items.
Environmental audio cues remind you clearly that the game is taking place in subtropical Australia, with background chattering of Rainbow Lorrikeets and whistling of Honey Eaters while leaves calmly rustle in the wind. [4] https://www.qualbert.com/reviews/unpacking-review-pc-steam/
Some players feel the game is difficult to play on the Nintendo switch but I think it's the perfect game to play on the switch because the game is 2-D. Moving items around on the screen felt a bit like using an Etch A Sketch. Games where the character moves in a 3-D space doing multiple things at once - walking and shooting at the same time - I find difficult with the Switch. I am also a video game noob so that might be why.
In addition to accessibility awards, Unpacking was named one of the best video games of 2021 by The New Yorker, Los Angeles Times, Forbes, the Financial Times, CNET and NME. And was nominated for a Peabody award in 2023 in the Interactive and Immersive category.
Although Witch Beam does not plan to make a sequel to Unpacking, the indie studio has released a new game that looks just as cute and even more engaging called Tempopo. A colorful, cozy game through which you solve grid-based rhythmic puzzles to rescue musical flowers to populate a musical garden.
Here is a video where Witch Beam demos gameplay of Tempopo:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gPYKfb8vNJQ
Unpacking Video Game Links:
https://www.unpackinggame.com/
Game Trailer from 2021:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lBFCrQDpaqg
The Design of "Unpacking" Broken Down by its Developers
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-zaVo2KdMIk
Unpacking with Wren Brier and Tim Dawson | The AIAS Game Maker's Notebook Podcast - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hz4iExgb9VI
Pixel Art Making Application, Wren reccomends: https://www.aseprite.org/
Reddit thread where the creative creator answers questions:
Game available on:
GamePass, PC, Mac, Nintendo Switch, Xbox, PlayStation, iOS, and Android
Pros
- Fun, engaging gameplay
- Runs smoothly, few or no bugs
Cons
- Short length wish game was longer
- Clunky controls
Final Verdict
Overall, Unpacking is a great game for young players, new at video gaming, and lovers of the art of video gaming. The transparency and generous giving of knowledge in interviews going as far as to show how the game was made in Unity and the challenges of working with thousands of game assets, Wren and Tim,are the epitome of what makes the video game culture great.
Reviewer Scores
- Gameplay: 6/10
- Immersion: 7/10
- Fun: 9/10
- Story: 9/10
- Graphics: 9/10
- Sound: 9/10
- Replay: 6/10