Unpacking Copycat games sold on the Switch Eshop

Summary

  • Despite its success, Unpacking faced copycats on mobile and Nintendo's eShop.
  • Copycats redid Unpacking's assets on mobile and masqueraded as official DLC on the eShop.
  • Unpacking offers a relaxing gameplay loop that tells a story by unpacking belongings without words, making it accessible to all players.



Until very recently, Witch Beam's cozy puzzle game Unpacking still had multiple copycats on Nintendo's eShop despite co-creator Wren Brier calling attention to the situation two weeks ago. After launch in 2021, Unpacking received predominantly positive reviews and took home a number of awards, including BAFTA's EE Game of the Year and DICE's Outstanding Achievement for an Independent Game, as well as nods for storytelling, sound design, accessibility, animation, environment art and game design from other outlets.

With the praise and recognition inevitably came others who wanted to capitalize on the game's successful premise, and Unpacking almost immediately found themselves victims of copycats in mobile game stores. Instead of being able to relax after years of development, the small indie team at Witch Beam had to get to work and fight to protect their IP. And the copycats were shameless, in many cases barely caring Unpackings assets before filling it with ads and putting it in stores.


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The apparent copies eventually made their way to Nintendo's eShop, a situation Wren Brier called out on December 15 after contacting the gaming giant two weeks earlier. Instead of being ad-laden free-to-play games like on mobile, these Switch copycats sold for just a few bucks to contrast Unpackingprice tag of $19.99. The oldest of them was posted at the end of October, while four others were added a month later, apparently from the same account. They appeared to be marketed as DLC for the actual game, with titles like “Chill Music Pack,” “New Chapters,” and “Haunting Locations.” At the time of writing these are Unpacking copycats seem to no longer be available on the eShop.


Unpacking's Copycats seem to have spread at the moment

It's been over two weeks and these are still available on the e-shop. Nintendo has not responded to any of our reports about these egregious scams using our trademarked game name and deliberately tricking Nintendo customers into buying cheap counterfeits.— Wren Brier (@wrenegade.bsky.social)2024-12-16T05:55: 21.046Z


The appeal of Unpacking is undeniable. Originally designed in early 2018 by Wren Brier, the puzzle game was originally designed and developed with her partner, Witch Beam co-director Tim Dawson. As the project grew, more members joined the previously small indie team Unpacking finally published in 2021 by Humble Games. Part of the draw is the simple and relaxing gameplay loop.


Unpacking follows an unnamed protagonist through several years of her life, and her story is told only through her belongings. Beginning in 1997, players unpack her belongings as she moves from one location to another, revealing details about her personality and experiences through the items she owns. The cozy game induces a kind of meditative state as players satisfyingly remove items from boxes and find just the right place for them in each new home. Throughout it all, a nice soundtrack accompanies the game, and since there are no words, Unpacking is available to everyone right out of the box.

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