{"id":15497,"date":"2023-12-02T01:00:09","date_gmt":"2023-12-02T05:00:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/?p=15497"},"modified":"2026-06-07T00:16:09","modified_gmt":"2026-06-07T04:16:09","slug":"game-unpacking","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/game-unpacking\/","title":{"rendered":"Unpacking"},"content":{"rendered":"<span itemprop=\"review\" itemscope itemtype=\"http:\/\/schema.org\/Review\"><meta itemprop=\"author\" content=\"Jamie\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/game_unpacking.png?ssl=1\" alt=\"Unpacking\" title=\"Unpacking\" class=\"ubb-cover-image alignright\"><strong>Title:<\/strong> <span itemprop=\"itemreviewed\">Unpacking<\/span> <br><strong>Publisher:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/reviews\/publishers\/humble-bundle\/\">Humble Bundle<\/a> <br><strong>Developer:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/reviews\/sources\/witch-beam\/\">Witch Beam<\/a> <br><strong>Release Date:<\/strong> November 2, 2021 <br><strong>Genres:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/reviews\/genres\/casual\/\">Casual<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/reviews\/genres\/indie\/\">Indie<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/reviews\/genres\/puzzle\/\">Puzzle<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/reviews\/genres\/simulation\/\">Simulation<\/a> <br><strong>Platform:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/reviews\/formats\/android\/\">Android<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/reviews\/formats\/ios\/\">iOS<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/reviews\/formats\/macos\/\">macOS<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/reviews\/formats\/microsoft-windows\/\">Microsoft Windows<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/reviews\/formats\/nintendo-switch\/\">Nintendo Switch<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/reviews\/formats\/playstation-5\/\">PlayStation 5<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/reviews\/formats\/steam\/\">Steam<\/a> <br><strong>Where to Buy:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/4pOnFTk\" target=\"_blank\">Amazon<\/a>,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/store.steampowered.com\/app\/1135690\/Unpacking\/\" target=\"_blank\">Steam<\/a><br><strong>Rating:<\/strong> \n\t\t\t\t\t\t<span itemprop=\"reviewRating\" itemscope itemtype=\"http:\/\/schema.org\/Rating\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"star_rating\"><i class=\"fa fa-star\"><\/i><i class=\"fa fa-star\"><\/i><i class=\"fa fa-star\"><\/i><i class=\"fa fa-star\"><\/i><i class=\"fa fa-star\"><\/i><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<meta itemprop=\"ratingValue\" content=\"5\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<meta itemprop=\"bestRating\" content=\"5\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t <br><p>Unpacking is a zen game about the familiar experience of pulling possessions out of boxes and fitting them into a new home. Part block-fitting puzzle, part home decoration, you are invited to create a satisfying living space while learning clues about the life you\u2019re unpacking. Over the course of eight house moves, you are given a chance to experience a sense of intimacy with a character you never see and a story you\u2019re never told.<\/p>\n\r\n\r\n<hr><\/span>\n<h2>Review<\/h2>\n<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/game_unpacking-page.png?resize=500%2C281&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-15500\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/game_unpacking-page.png?w=500&amp;ssl=1 500w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/game_unpacking-page.png?resize=300%2C169&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/>I remembered this game blowing up on release and I was surprised that it had such a simple concept: you unpack moving boxes and move into a space. I didn&#8217;t pick it up until recently after receiving a strong recommendation from a friend, and after playing it I completely understand the hype. This game was COZY!<\/p>\n<p>Starting from 1997 and going up to 2018, you unpack the life of the unseen and unnamed main character. There is an emotional story told through each level, and I was frankly impressed with the game&#8217;s ability to weave a narrative without a single line of dialogue. I ran through a whole gamut of emotions; nostalgia unpacking a room very much like my own childhood room, frustration trying to make room in someone else&#8217;s life, the depressing ego hit moving back home, hope and sheer joy for the future. I can&#8217;t express how the design of each level managed to pull this off. There are two instances of &#8220;moving in&#8221; with someone that felt so drastically different. So much of this game hit close to home for me and my own experiences growing up and navigating adulthood.<\/p>\n<p>This game was incredibly therapeutic to play, when I started I didn&#8217;t stop until I was finished with the game. The soundtrack was wonderful and set the mood for each level, and finding all the silly little hidden animations and stickers as a nice addition. I clocked four hours on the game, though that was with me getting up to do other tasks and then spending time afterwards collecting all the achievements. A short and sweet game that doesn&#8217;t overstay it&#8217;s welcome yet remains heartfelt and memorable.<\/p>\n<h2>Content Warnings<\/h2>\n<span class=\"ubb-spoiler\"><a class=\"ubb-view-spoil\">View Spoiler &raquo;<\/a><span style=\"display: none;\" class=\"ubb-thespoil\">Breakup, Hidden sticker achievement references suicide humor <a class=\"ubb-hide-spoil\" style=\"cursor: hand; cursor: pointer;\">&laquo; Hide Spoiler<\/a><\/span><\/span>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Review I remembered this game blowing up on release and I was surprised that it had such a simple concept: you unpack moving boxes and move into a space. I&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":15499,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[30],"tags":[4377,5285,5286,3545,3285,4313,2135,5507],"book-author":[],"book-illustrator":[],"book-series":[],"book-publisher":[3505],"book-genre":[56,57,3506,5139],"book-source":[3504],"book-format":[53,54,55,50,52,79,3503,49],"class_list":["post-15497","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-game-review","tag-australian-games","tag-cozy-games","tag-lgbtq-games","tag-set-in-the-1990s","tag-set-in-the-2000s","tag-set-in-the-2010s","tag-single-player","tag-sorting-games","book-publisher-humble-bundle","book-genre-casual","book-genre-indie","book-genre-puzzle","book-genre-simulation","book-source-witch-beam","book-format-android","book-format-ios","book-format-macos","book-format-microsoft-windows","book-format-nintendo-switch","book-format-playstation-4","book-format-playstation-5","book-format-steam"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/game_unpacking-header.png?fit=1080%2C540&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15497","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15497"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15497\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18532,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15497\/revisions\/18532"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15499"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15497"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15497"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15497"},{"taxonomy":"book-author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/book-author?post=15497"},{"taxonomy":"book-illustrator","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/book-illustrator?post=15497"},{"taxonomy":"book-series","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/book-series?post=15497"},{"taxonomy":"book-publisher","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/book-publisher?post=15497"},{"taxonomy":"book-genre","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/book-genre?post=15497"},{"taxonomy":"book-source","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/book-source?post=15497"},{"taxonomy":"book-format","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/book-format?post=15497"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}