Unpacking (video game)

Last updated
Unpacking
Unpacking game cover.png
Developer(s) Witch Beam
Publisher(s) Humble Bundle
Director(s) Wren Brier
Producer(s)
  • Kip Bunyea
  • Erika Mariko Olsen
Designer(s)
  • Wren Brier
  • Tim Dawson
Programmer(s) Tim Dawson
Composer(s) Jeff van Dyck
Platform(s)
ReleaseWindows, Switch, Xbox One
  • WW: November 2, 2021
PS4, PS5
  • WW: May 10, 2022
iOS, Android
  • WW: August 24, 2023
Genre(s) Puzzle
Mode(s) Single-player

Unpacking is a puzzle video game developed by Witch Beam and published by Humble Bundle for Microsoft Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, Linux, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation 5. The game received positive reviews, and won several awards, including two BAFTA Games Awards, a D.I.C.E. Award for Outstanding Achievement for an Independent Game, and Game of the Year by Eurogamer .

Contents

Gameplay

The game is divided into stages [1] named by the years in which they take place: 1997, 2004, 2007, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2015, and 2018. In each stage, the player unpacks a female character's possessions from boxes into a new dwelling. Each unpacked item must be fit into the living space, learning the unseen and unnamed protagonist's life story through her possessions and the places she lives. [2] Some items have designated places they must be put into in order to complete the stage. There are a total of 35 rooms across all dwellings. [3]

Development

The development team accepting Best Audio at the 22nd Game Developers Choice Awards Unpacking wins Best Audio - GDCA 2022.jpg
The development team accepting Best Audio at the 22nd Game Developers Choice Awards

Unpacking was developed by Witch Beam, an independent game studio based in Brisbane, Australia. The studio was founded in 2013 and had previously released Assault Android Cactus , a twin-stick shooter, in 2015. The game was first conceptualized by Wren Brier when she moved in with her partner, Witch Beam co-director Tim Dawson, in early 2018. She found that unpacking unlabelled boxes, not knowing what is stored inside, was an experience that could be translated into a video game. The two participated in the Stugan games accelerator program in Sweden, and the game entered full production in early 2019.

Unpacking is mostly a wordless experience, with the narrative mainly told through objects the player unpacks from boxes. [4] The team put a lot of thought into making Unpacking's accessible: The nearly wordless nature of the game ensures that anyone who may have language or comprehension barriers can still enjoy playing the game, and many additional accessibility features were implemented. [5]

The sound design includes over 14,000 foley effects, with multiple pick-up and placement sound effects unique to each item. [6]

Release

While Witch Beam managed most of the game's social media channels, the team recruited Victoria Tran, the community director of Among Us , to help operate Unpacking's Discord server and TikTok account. [4] The team initially expected development of the game to take about a year and a half, though actual production of the game took twice as long. [7] Unpacking was released for personal computers, Nintendo Switch and Xbox One on November 2, 2021. [8] Versions for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 were released on May 10, 2022. [9] Physical versions of the game, published and distributed by Limited Run Games, were available for preorder between March 29 and May 1, 2022. [10]

Reception

Unpacking received "generally favorable" reviews, according to review aggregator Metacritic. [11] [12] [13] [14] The game received positive reviews from Rock Paper Shotgun , [24] GameSpot , [2] Eurogamer , [25] Nintendo Life , [18] IGN , [17] Kotaku , [26] and TouchArcade . [22] It sold over 100,000 copies across all platforms in its first ten days. [27] GamesRadar+ praised it for its innovative narrative, [28] and it was awarded a Can I Play That? award for its accessibility. [29] The game was nominated for Game of the Year at the Gayming Awards 2022 and won Best LGBTQ Indie Game and Authentic Representation. [30] Unpacking also won 2 IGDA Global Industry Game Awards in 2022. One for 2D Animation and another for 2D Environment Art. [31]

Awards

Unpacking was named one of the best video games of 2021 by The New Yorker , [32] Los Angeles Times , [33] Forbes , [34] the Financial Times , [35] CNET , [36] and NME . [37] Eurogamer selected Unpacking as their Game of the Year. [38]

With Gayming Magazine, it won Best LGBTQ Indie Game and Authentic Representation Award, and was nominated for Game of the Year. [30]

YearAwardCategoryResultRef
2021 Australian Game Developer Awards Game of the YearWon [39]
Outstanding Achievement for an Independent GameWon
Excellence in AccessibilityWon
2022 25th Annual D.I.C.E. Awards Outstanding Achievement for an Independent Game Won [40]
Game Developers Choice Awards Best AudioWon [41] [42]
Innovation AwardWon
Best NarrativeNominated
Independent Games Festival Awards Seamus McNally Grand PrizeNominated [43] [42]
Excellence in NarrativeNominated
Excellence in DesignNominated
Excellence in AudioNominated
18th British Academy Games Awards Family GameNominated [44]
NarrativeWon
Original PropertyNominated
EE Game of the YearWon
IGDA Global Industry Game Awards2D AnimationWon [31]
2D Environmental ArtWon
2023 Peabody Awards Interactive & ImmersivePending [45]

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References

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  2. 1 2 3 Petite, Steven (November 1, 2021). "Unpacking Review - The Things We Carry". GameSpot . Archived from the original on May 12, 2022. Retrieved February 13, 2022.
  3. ↑ Kerr, Chris (November 16, 2021). "Intimacy from the inanimate in house-moving puzzler Unpacking". Game Developer . Archived from the original on December 23, 2021. Retrieved July 19, 2022.
  4. 1 2 Button, Chris (November 2, 2021). "The making of Unpacking: From bullet-hell to domestic heaven". GamesHub. Archived from the original on January 8, 2022. Retrieved May 16, 2022.
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  6. ↑ Notis, Ari (November 4, 2021). "Hit Puzzle Game Unpacking Features 14,000 (!) Audio Files Replicating Ordinary Sounds". Kotaku . Archived from the original on January 4, 2022. Retrieved July 19, 2022.
  7. ↑ Dealessandri, Marie (October 19, 2021). "How Unpacking kept a steady heartbeat after going viral years before launch". GameIndustry.biz . Archived from the original on June 16, 2022. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
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  11. 1 2 "Unpacking for PC Reviews". Metacritic . Archived from the original on March 22, 2022. Retrieved February 13, 2022.
  12. 1 2 "Unpacking for Switch Reviews". Metacritic . Archived from the original on June 8, 2022. Retrieved February 13, 2022.
  13. 1 2 "Unpacking for Xbox One Reviews". Metacritic . Archived from the original on March 22, 2022. Retrieved February 13, 2022.
  14. 1 2 "Unpacking for PlayStation 5 Reviews". Metacritic . Archived from the original on June 6, 2022. Retrieved July 19, 2022.
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