Unpacking

 PC
Metascore
83

Generally favorable reviews - based on 26 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 23 out of 26
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 26
  3. Negative: 0 out of 26
  1. KeenGamer
    Nov 28, 2023
    70
    Unpacking is not a game for everyone, but the people it appeals to will fall in love with it. The game has its own unique charm, and players will find themselves breezing through the whole thing before they know it. However, that does mean the game is way shorter than it should be. With only 8 levels, they definitely could have made it to at least 13-15. The beautiful pixel art enhances the game's aesthetic, though certain items don't translate as well, leading to some confusion.
  2. GameCritics
    Jan 3, 2022
    70
    In the end, Unpacking is completely fine. It’s a three or four-hour experience of going through a life via boxes, and the believable, realistic narrative that unfolds. It’s recommended as a nice break from more taxing titles, but I still wish there was much more to… unpack.
  3. GameSpace
    Dec 1, 2021
    55
    Do you remember what you saw in this game? The unboxing will be no less for me than the last superhero movie I watched. Maybe I'll remember her the next time I move, or maybe even grin. I enjoyed the short time I spent with Unpacking and hope there will be more in the future.
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  1. Kotaku
    Nov 5, 2021
    By the end of Unpacking, I felt like I’d been told an intimate story of the most important stages of a woman’s life, with all the ups and downs she had experienced along the way. The friends she made, the lovers who had come and gone, what had become of all her dreams and achievements. Yet what I’d actually been shown were just fragments. Trash dumped on my desktop. I’d put those pieces together and built my own story without even realising it, once again having been tricked into making educated guesses. Only here, there were no wrong answers, only different stories. As the credits rolled, that was one of the nicest realisations I’d had at the end of a video game in years.
  2. Rock, Paper, Shotgun
    Nov 9, 2021
    There is care in every line of Unpacking, in the ancient mug that you come to know as The Mug You Always Keep Your Toothbrush In, the way this person's fashion changes a little bit over time, the sound design that sees cutlery jangle when you put it away, or the paper rustle whenever you pick out something new. Each new box, each new item you pull out, is a little surprise, a little exquisite treasure. Every room you complete in Unpacking is like tearing open a Kinder Egg and carefully constructing the toy inside. [RPS Bestest Bests]

Awards & Rankings

36
#36 Best PC Game of 2021
65
#65 Most Discussed PC Game of 2021

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
7.7

Generally favorable reviews- based on 83 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 56 out of 83
  2. Mixed: 23 out of 83
  3. Negative: 4 out of 83
  1. AllNewSuperfake
    Nov 7, 2021
    5
    Everyone is pretending this is so casual and relaxing, BUT IS IT REALLY...?!

    Who is that woman that is too lazy to unpack her own stuff and    Everyone is pretending this is so casual and relaxing, BUT IS IT REALLY...?!

    Who is that woman that is too lazy to unpack her own stuff and enslaved you, some faceless minion, to do it for her, and at a very young age on top of that? Why does she force you to put all the furniture in one corner of the room, leaving two walls completely blank? What kind of woman only owns two pairs of shoes and no socks? And things get very dark later on, when she moves into places where the previous owner is nowhere to be seen and left most of their belongings in a hurry. And what do you get for your work? Stickers, until she puts you away again for another couple of years. I'm pretty sure the binding spell is in the Rubik's cube that she takes everywhere but obviously doesn't touch, so destroy it. Save yourself.

    .... yeah, not really.

    It's as casual as it gets, and has zero challenge or replayability, and you have literally one job. Don't get creative, it doesn't like it. It does however what it sets out to do, so I can't really blame it for that, and if you like the style you might even enjoy the underlying "story" it tells by showing, not telling. It's certainly as inoffensive and cute as possible, which also means that it passes up on any chance to be more than mildly interesting.

    oR DOeSN't iT?! Yeah, no, really not.    … Full Review »
  2. Xerenis
    Nov 17, 2021
    0
    3rd time i have to write this review because u cant take criticism and delete it. 0/10 boring .
  3. ikgendou
    Nov 13, 2021
    3
    Boring game, plus a lot of items are confusing and don't know where to put.
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