Unravel - Review

When Microsoft first announced the XBOX One they showcased a number of games that would be available on launch including Unravel.   The game looked like a fun puzzle platformer with a cute protagonist called Yarny.  I didn't buy the XBOX One on release & ended up forgetting about the game until recently.  I decided last week that I had waited long enough to play it & so started my journey with Yarny.


I like to make comparisons between foods & the games I have played.  Smaller games always feel like snacks to me, some of them leave you wanting more while others remind you why a proper meal is better.  While playing Unravel I had to decide was it a tasty treat like GÜ Millionaire Flapjacks (which for some reason Tesco no longer stock & I wake up in cold sweats wanting them) or a Twinkie that seems okay at the time but after you have a had a few you think 'meh, there not that great & now I feel horrible'.

Unravel follows the story of a little red creature called Yarny.  His mission is to help recover memories of a families almost forgotten past by collecting badges.  This is achieved through entering photos in the house & traversing that moment in time.


As you explore these memories you see many happy ones along with some very dark painful ones. One of the main themes of the game is family & how important it is.  The other is nature, it's beauty & how it's destruction is so devastating, not only to people but also the environment.


Unravel may appear like a simple story at first glance but is actually full of depth, emotion & heart. As always I won't reveal anymore about the story as it's an adventure you need to experience for yourself.

The game looks stunning & proves once again you don't need to be a big studio to produce high-end visuals.  There is just so much detail in every area of the game, the background is just an impressive & important as the foreground.  There were times when I was playing that I would just stand still & admire the beauty of the game.


As is my way when discussing games I won't go into much details about the various levels, that being said I would like to mention one of my favorites.  Mountain Trek was my favorite part of the game for so many reasons.  It features outside areas & caves, scary enemies, magic mushrooms & you get to ride a fish.  In case you wondering is riding a fish as cool as it sounds yes, yes it is.


The music used in the game was very interesting & has a very Nordic sound.  Violins & pianos feature heavily in the soundtrack which help create homely & folksy sounds.  There are two composers who worked on Unravel, they are:

Frida Johansson; who is from Sweden & not only composes but also plays music, mainly violin & piano.  She has worked on music for radio, theater & has featured on many other musical collaborations.

Henrik Oja; who is also from Sweden & has been part of multiple groups including Spacious Mind.
who are; David Akerlund, David Johansson, Jens Unosson, Niklas Viklund, Thomas Brannstrom. Their albums include; Take That Weight Off Your Shoulders, Sailing the Seagoat, Organic Mind Solution & many more.


Some of my favorite pieces included: 'Yarny's Theme', 'Mountain Trek', 'Snowfall', 'The Sea (parts 1-4)' & 'Credits'. The music has a very distinct rich sound that works really well & adds the already impressive atmosphere in the game.  Overall a solid soundtrack that helped make something good into something great.

At first glance Unravel looks like just a fun & entertaining game but at closer inspection you see it for what it is truly is, a masterpiece of emotion, character, feeling & depth.  I think the game would have been better suited to be called 'Yarny' because without him the game wouldn't be the same.  You could argue some other character could have filled his place but I would have to disagree.  The game is visually impressive in it's own right but I feel it is Yarny who is the really makes the game.


I found myself emotionally connected with Yarny in the early parts of the game.  He is bursting with personality.  For example the first time a butterfly appears he jumps with surprise but also looks in wonder & awe.  Like with Sonic if you take no action he starts to get bored or will cross his arms looking contemplative.  Throughout the game you see him get; scared, inquisitive, happy, sad & so much more.  As you move along the level his body unravels & the smaller he gets I found myself panicking looking for more yarn to save him.  To put it simply Yarny is amazing, powerful & is highly memorable.


Yarny's key tool to solve puzzles is the lasso & for the most part it works really well whether you need to; climb to a higher area, swing across somewhere, create a bridge or any number of things. Random animal encounters are not only cool but can help you navigate areas or try to attack you (feckin' birds).   The hedgehogs were one of my favorite animals not only from a visual stand point but they just acted so cute.


The gameplay I felt overall was strong with one main exception & a few minor ones.  The main one was on the level Last Leaf.  I found that when dragging the lantern it was not always successful & seemed to get stuck on something invisible.  I restarted the level a number of times & each time I did I got a little more frustrated. In the end I clearly the stage but with significant perseverance.  The minor exceptions were that some puzzles did not always work on first try even if the solution was correct & Yarny's lasso sometimes failed to work as intended.





So after over 8 hours gameplay how did I feel?  Overall I really enjoyed the game & Yarny feels like a truly magical character.  While there were some flaws in the game it was never enough to make me give up.  I would say the game is great & I like forward to future projects by the studio.