It’s video game storytelling at its most approachable, letting us linger with images that are easily identifiable but just imprecise enough to be universal. With “Arcane,” its in house-produced animated show for Netlflix, Riot aims to put games at the center of the entertainment universe. We can read between the lines, for instance, when we move in with someone else and see their hobbies become ours, only a few years later to be asked to put those items behind closed doors.Įntertainment & Arts ‘Arcane,’ the new ‘League of Legends’ Netflix series, shows Riot Games’ ‘black licorice’ strategy “Unpacking” sent me on my quest of reminiscence.įor this isn’t so much a game about putting things away as it is one of constant discovery. There are a few aha instances that let us deeper into the mind of the character whose life we’re assigning order, and they’re such a delight that I won’t fully spoil any here.īut as a broad example, mid-game I was asked what to do with a picture - hang it, tack it, hide it - and while a relatively small choice by game standards, the solution was one I not only wanted to sit with but it inspired me to start opening some old boxes. Given just brief nods at her thoughts and writings, we gradually come to view her possessions with the love and care that she has for them.Ĭonsider it a “Tetris” or the more recent and apt example of “Wilmot’s Warehouse,” but one that truly wants us to think about big life moments rather than just neatly organize items. We get a glimpse of passions - art, painting, reading, video game playing - and some hints at fears, such as the moment our unseen protagonist writes that it feels like a big step to move in with a significant other. What makes it such a lovely game - and a prime example of the sort of environmental-focused storytelling that games do so well - is that we never meet any human characters. “Unpacking” is ultimately a story about growing up, with life’s changes told through the items we own, the items we acquire and the ones we forever hold onto but keep just out of sight. The game, from Australian developer Witch Beam and available now for the Nintendo Switch, Xbox consoles and home computers, is peaceful in tone but deeply thoughtful in its presentation. This theme is explored in “Unpacking,” a beautifully restrained and relaxing game that on the surface is about the puzzle of organization. We’re constantly building the story of our lives, an evolving narrative that we live among and inside. And while I’m far from a hoarder, I understand the temptation to never let go of that high school love letter or pack of tarot cards, which can only truly have meaning when in the presence of the person who brought them into my world. If we’ve saved something, there’s likely some meaning to it. There’s a lot to unpack when it comes to the stories, the emotions and memories contained in the items we own and continue to hold onto. Don’t believe us? Ask famed relationship therapist Esther PerelĪn interview with Esther Perel - the psychotherapist behind the popular podcast “Where Should We Begin?” and now a game developer - turns into a therapy session. That’s a bit of a mess these days, so we’re going to skip it, since I know its disorganization is a metaphorical representation of how throughout 2021 I’ve let my own self-care slip a bit.Įntertainment & Arts Games are therapy. They’re the spirits of close friends, past partners or departed family members - mementos from those who touched my life and don’t deserve to be forgotten, even if they are still a part of my life. I like to keep some of those items close but out of sight, their presence somewhat ghostly. In the nightstand on my right is a rarely opened drawer filled with personal trinkets of the melancholic nostalgic sort, such as a pack of tarot cards left recently by someone dear to me as well as the photo booth pictures we took one night when I failed to look at the camera. It was one of the first plushies I remember having as a kid, and it moved with me through the years, only today it’s not for cuddling - it’s on display. Its head has been sewn on at least twice, and it used to make a bell-like noise. As I write this in my home office, which in these late-pandemic, work-from-home days is simply my bed, I can look at the nightstand on the left and see on one of its open-slotted shelves a giant bumblebee.
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