Unpacking was recently released on the 1st of November on Nintendo Switch, PC, and Xbox One. The game has also arrived on Microsoft’s Game Pass service, giving plenty of players the chance to try the game.
With the huge range of adventures available to gamers, one may question why players would opt to play a game about moving house, a notoriously excruciating chore. However, Unpacking has been getting surprisingly solid reviews from critics. In fact, the Nintendo Switch version currently has an excellent 86 Metascore, placing it even higher than games with long, fleshed-out adventures like Dragon Age: Inquisition and Kingdom Hearts.
As the positive scores suggest, Unpacking does a fantastic job with its limited concept. For those who are considering getting the game but are perhaps still on the fence about its concept or gameplay mechanics, here is a breakdown of some of the game’s best and worst features.
6 Loved: The Subtle Storytelling
It would have been very easy for Witch Beam, the development team behind Unpacking, to simply construct a series of randomly assorted levels of increasing difficulty, with no rhyme or reason to their design.
Instead, Witch Beam’s game offers a surprisingly coherent story that players may not fully realize is unfolding until they’re mid-way through. The story adds great context to the game and exemplifies how the act of unpacking personal belongings often ties in with important times and new eras in one’s life.
5 Didn’t Love: The Lack Of Content
Unpacking will take most players around 3 hours to complete. This is, of course, on the short side, though this isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as many games often suffer from overstaying their welcome.
Although 3 hours is a decent length for the story of Unpacking, it may have been nice to have had some bonus levels, which could have been separate from the main story and perhaps leaned into the puzzle aspect of the game by offering harder stages.
4 Loved: The Absence Of Hand-Holding
Tutorials are a tricky thing for developers to get right. With such a wide range of people playing video games these days, it can be tough for them to find a balance that satisfies both casual gamers who would like a breakdown of what to do and hardcore gamers who would rather learn the mechanics naturally. Either way, a game will ideally be able to teach players its mechanics without forcing them to read any immersion-breaking pop-ups.
Unpacking is a great example of this, as although the game is about as far on the “causal” spectrum as can be, it doesn’t implement excessive tutorials. Instead, it trusts its players to use their intuition in where and how to place items, making for a more natural experience.
3 Didn’t Love: Forced Placement
One aspect of Unpacking that has divided players is the forced placement of some items. This divide isn’t too surprising, as the “zen puzzle game” branding is something of an oxymoron, as, generally speaking, puzzles inherently aren't zen. Granted, without the forced placement, some players could just haphazardly place all the items as fast as possible and call it a day, but they would only be harming their own experience. Braid is a good example of this, as players can simply run through each level in a matter of seconds, but this is clearly not how the game is supposed to be played.
Moreover, the fact that some items must be placed in certain locations inadvertently encourages players to rush, as they want to immediately see which items require specific placement, which can’t be done until everything is placed. By removing forced placement, the game would offer a better zen experience, rather than the current mix of zen and puzzle, which comes off as slightly awkward.
2 Loved: The Versatility Of Some Items
In a game about moving house, it would have been a challenge for the developers to keep things interesting and engaging. Thankfully, the developers succeeded in this by implementing a range of placement options for some items.
Choices like being able to fold clothes and towels or hang them up may not sound too interesting on paper, but it does give the player more to think about in regard to utilizing each room’s space, and ultimately creates a better gameplay experience.
1 Didn’t Love: It Can Get Tedious
With the aforementioned forced placement issue in mind, the game can get fairly tedious at times. Along with the lack of space, many players will also struggle to figure out what some things are, as some items are blurry or hard to distinguish.
Although there are logical solutions to the placements, some players will have to start randomly clicking in hopes of finding the right space, which is never a good indication of a puzzle game’s quality.
Unpacking is out now for Xbox One, PC, and Nintendo Switch.