Unpacking (2021): Storytelling in details

Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

On Nov. 2, 2021, Australian indie game studio Witch Beam released their newest game, Unpacking (2021), through Humble Bundle publishers as a cross-platform, single-player zen puzzle game. In it, players complete the deceptively simple task of unpacking the main character's belongings through multiple moves at vital stages in their life— such as into their childhood bedroom, college dorm, and first shared apartment with a partner. 

This game won 10 awards since its release and received eight additional nominations across five different award series, including winning Game of the Year at the Australian Game Developer Awards in 2021 and the Outstanding Achievement for an Independent Game award from the twenty-fifth Annual Design Innovate Communicate Entertain (DICE) Awards in 2022. 

So, what is it about this game, which has no dialogue, no cutscenes, and not a single visible character, that makes it so fun and so rich in content that it stands to beat out fellow nominees in high-stakes categories? 

Well— the secret is in the game's thoughtful and subtle core storytelling devices: the environments and the items our faceless main character takes along with them. 

Since purchasing the game for myself only four months ago, I have already played through the game twice and found new things to appreciate about it in each instance. This game has quickly moved up my list of recommendations for my fellow cozy gamers. 

Unpacking (2021) hooked me within the first few moments with the art style alone. It has a distinctly vibrant and cutesy feel that really places the player in the time through which a majority of this game takes place, the 2000s and 2010s. When playing, I pulled a teal t-shirt from one of the boxes that had the graphic of a realistic cat playing a cartoon guitar. At this moment, I knew the game developers had the precise image of the kind of era and character the story was set on capturing.

It truly felt as though each item in the game was selected through the lens of realism and the natural development every human undergoes. Although we have no true details of who the main character is or the life they are growing and aiming for themselves, a curious player looking for a more storytelling orientation can certainly surmise these things. 

Some of my favorite revealing details are the items we see the main character keep through different stages of their life, like their stuffed animal pig that appears with more wear and tear through each level. I also love how the character collects different landmark sculptures over the years, suggesting they presumably travel to different parts of the world over their life and take these trinkets back home with them. In the middle level of the games, the main character owns climbing gear, but in the last level (which I assume is a stage where the character is still rather young), their gear is replaced with a walking cane, potentially symbolizing a long-lasting injury from their time as a climber. 

These kinds of details are what differentiate this puzzle game from others. Often, the puzzle aspect of puzzle games is just a means to ‘unlock’ the next aspect of the story— if there is one at all. On the other hand, Unpacking (2021) is a story first, that tells itself through the mechanisms of the gameplay. Namely, the mechanics of a traditional puzzle game. The puzzle itself is just another piece of this game’s rich storytelling and the main path taken to characterize and redefine Unpacking’s (2021) main character.  

The game’s actual mechanics are also rather satisfying and concise. I appreciate how the game really requires you to fill up the space and encourages shuffling, reordering, and true consideration of each level’s layout. It still does this within limits, though, confining certain objects to certain rooms; like the pots having to end up in the kitchen —or sometimes— certain positions, like posters needing to be hung on the walls.

I find this to be a nicely tuned balance; the game is specific enough to feel like a puzzle while still allowing for creative liberties to be taken by each player. I will admit, however, that sometimes I find some of the item location limitations to be a little annoying. For instance, if I want to put slippers out by the character’s bed, I simply cannot because the game requires them to be in the closet. I do still understand the mechanic’s purpose, even if it is, at times, a momentary frustration.

Unpacking (2021) is a standout game that I ended up liking more than I initially anticipated; it moved me in unexpected ways. It is a game that I think of rather fondly, and I find myself returning to it repeatedly— even within the short span of time that I have owned it. Overall, I really admire its simplicity and the kind of nuances and developments it can create through that.