Organization and packing games are a relatively new subgenre of cozy games that have gained popularity in recent years. I hate cleaning my house, but I can’t deny the joy of living in a neat and organized space. These games offer a similar feeling of enjoyment in a relaxing environment, without the physical labor required to actually clean my house.
Camper Van: Make It Home, developed by Malapata Studio and published by Wings, is an organization game in which we travel through nature in our camper van and organize our belongings so we have a more enjoyable living space in our small vehicle. I spent half a day in my messy room, ignoring my house chores to play Camper Van, and I think it was time well spent.
Camper Van: Make It Home is a simple game. We travel the world with a couple of different vehicles that we can decorate the way we want, and once we have set up camp in a nice area, we have to unpack our belongings and make the best use of the limited space available. There is also a simple story told throughout the game by a few sentences written in our travel journal.
We begin our journey with a partner, but after a few levels, we have to continue our journey alone. Until we eventually have a choice of a few different pets to accompany us for the rest of our travels. The narrative is not a big part of the game, but I especially like how it is conveyed through gameplay, and you get the gist of the story even if you don’t read the short journal notes at the beginning of each level. In the first few levels, we have two patio chairs to put up next to our van to enjoy the open air, but at some point, we start to bring only one chair, signifying the change in the character’s life.
The most attractive aspect of Camper Van is the art style. The world looks vibrant, the van looks beautiful, and the items look well-designed and intentional. The color theme is subtle and soothing, there isn’t a lot of movement and action happening on the screen except the items we are manipulating, creating a relaxing visual experience.
The visual design is accompanied by a fittingly relaxing selection of music. The first item we unpack in each level is our music player, whether it’s a simple speaker using our phone to play music, or a record player with a small collection of vinyl. We can pause, play, and choose the record that fits the mood best in our own terms. Camper Van doesn’t force us to do anything. This is a theme apparent in different aspects of the game, and I think it enhances the experience for a cozy game.
The gameplay of Camper Van follows the same themes. It’s simple, relaxing, and entirely optional. It’s simply about unpacking our items one by one and trying to use the space and different containers in the van to store and organize them. The controls are easy and intuitive, placing items works smoothly, and there are occasional pieces that stack together nicely, providing easy puzzles to solve to save more space.
There is no point or winning in the game. All you need to do to progress is to unpack everything. You can diligently organize everything cleanly into the various containers and shelves, or you can simply drop everything on the ground. This could make the game unappealing to some players, but I found it enhances the relaxing experience. If I had one or two items that didn’t fit anywhere neatly, I could just leave them outside. I didn’t have to reorganize everything to fit another item if I didn’t want to.
Certain levels in Camper Van are also a continuation of previous levels, meaning how you organized before can make your life much easier with the new items you need to fit into your van. If we put in the effort to unpack items more neatly, we’ll have an easier time in the following levels, or again, we can simply leave out items that don’t fit into our organizational method.
It feels nice to find the right place for items, but the game doesn’t force us to find the perfect place for everything. This makes Camper Van: Make It Home into a cozy game with no frustrating moments. Everything from visual design, soundtrack, and gameplay is tailored to a wholesome, relaxing, and soothing experience that goes as far as you feel comfortable going.
Nima reviewed Camper Van: Make It Home on PC with a provided review copy.
