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General discussionRelease: Hidden Object Games find their way to GOG.COM(283 posts)(283 posts)
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This is my favourite topic
Posted August 03, 2018
Tiny Bang Story, Morphopolis, plus the Enigmatis and Nightmares from the Deep trilogies.

Who doesn't love the look of a messy room, devilishly concealing all the important items when you need them the most? That guilty pleasure of rummaging around for your car keys, wallet, or that grotesque ivory ornament which unlocks the secrets to the family curse, is what Hidden Object Games are all about!
We kick off their arrival on GOG.COM with a fine selection that was hiding in plain sight and some purty 70% discounts until August 10th, 1pm UTC.

Tiny Bang Story takes place on a lovely planet thrown into disarray after an unfortunate clash with a total jerk of a meteor. Help fix it by solving quirky puzzles and scouring hand-drawn screens for objects of interest.

The Enigmatis trilogy begins on the spooky streets of Maple Creek, a place overflowing with secrets, tragedy, and hidden knickknacks! Disoriented and confused after being hit by a furious storm, you must steel your nerves and stay focused on finding that missing girl.

Morphopolis is an evocative puzzle adventure set in an almost-psychedelic forest undergrowth full of curious insects. Gorgeous exploration and fascinating discoveries await.

Ghost ships, doomed romance, pirate treasure, and items in need of finding make up the Nightmares from the Deep trilogy, a chilling tale straight from Davy Jones' locker.
Posted August 06, 2018
Hidden object games on GOG!
Posted August 06, 2018
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Starmaker: But if you need duct tape, it's in a safe in a vampire's mansion, and the lock is a Simon Says for no reason
That's one of the things annoying me the most about hidden object games. Perfectly ordinary day-to-day-use objects are behind multiple weird locks, just so you don't get them too soon. Which leads us to the fact that the worlds feel completely artificial. No attempt is made to disguise the nature of the world, being there so you get from puzzle to puzzle.

You have to open doors leading to rooms that SHOULD be in daily use (if anyone even lives there, the environments in most games are void of humans/fantasy creatures going about their business) but the parts you need are hidden in the strangest out-of-the-way places.

In one game I had to get into a shop where the owner still worked. No mention was made that he had been locked in until then.
Posted August 06, 2018
So, what is considered the cream of the crop in this genre (regardless what is available on GOG)?

I've played two or three of the mystery case files games years ago (probably 12 years ago already. Holy moley, that went quick!) and they were doing interesting things with plots and puzzles.
Has the genre evolved to be more complex these days, or is it just more of the same?
Post edited August 06, 2018 by Plumb
Posted August 06, 2018
low rated
deleted
Posted August 06, 2018
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Starmaker: But if you need duct tape, it's in a safe in a vampire's mansion, and the lock is a Simon Says for no reason
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Laberbacke: That's one of the things annoying me the most about hidden object games. Perfectly ordinary day-to-day-use objects are behind multiple weird locks, just so you don't get them too soon. Which leads us to the fact that the worlds feel completely artificial. No attempt is made to disguise the nature of the world, being there so you get from puzzle to puzzle.

You have to open doors leading to rooms that SHOULD be in daily use (if anyone even lives there, the environments in most games are void of humans/fantasy creatures going about their business) but the parts you need are hidden in the strangest out-of-the-way places.

In one game I had to get into a shop where the owner still worked. No mention was made that he had been locked in until then.
Have you played Unforeseen Incidents? Everyone should. It's awesome and free of exactly this annoyance to a degree never seen in adventure games before.

SPOILERS for an unimportant scene for those who need convincing
(paraphrased, the actual writing is much better)

"Hey, can I borrow your magnifying glass?"
"Nope, I need it to read. If you want one, they give them away at the library to senior citizens."
(at the library)
(I shudder in anticipation of a cat moustache puzzle, even though the game has been awesome up to this point and I have no rational reason to expect a betrayal)
"Can you give me a magnifying glass?"
"Nope, those are only free for old people. If you want to buy one, that's $7."
"Eh, okay, fine, here you go."
(+ magnifying glass)
(I realize how much I hate contrived puzzles in adventure games, and how wonderfully liberating it is to finally play a great game. My character doesn't even have a wallet in his inventory. He has a multitool. Let that sink it.)
Posted August 06, 2018
Hey GOG I'd like to report a bug.

You erroneously tag these games as "Adventure" games. Hidden Object games are not Adventure games. Just because you "point-and-click" things does not make them Adventure games. Any similarities between the two genres are membrane-thin at best.

It's not a problem to serve the Hidden Object game audience, but please do not saturate the Adventure tag with these they way Steam has unfortunately done.
Posted August 06, 2018
I think this genre has come on a long way from its earlier days. It used to be one tedious HOG scene after another with little attempt to tell a story. The games gog have put on here especially those from artifex mundi I wouldn't even call them that. You could easily take out the HOG scenes and still be left with a decent to good adventure game. Games like the Drawn series are particulary above average. As someone else mentioned I hope gog is now more receptive to the other maligned genre Escape the room games. I know 90% are mostly dross but the Room series and Forever lost games are briliant.

There is also another kind of adventure subgenre which i call the scenic adventure like Rhem, Alida, A quiet weekend in Capri, Lost in Time, The Eyes of Ara and Carol Reed mysteries. Lots of pretty screens and puzzles, some cheesy fmv acting and little animation. Please have a look at them gog.
Posted August 06, 2018
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solzariv: Hey GOG I'd like to report a bug.

You erroneously tag these games as "Adventure" games. Hidden Object games are not Adventure games. Just because you "point-and-click" things does not make them Adventure games. Any similarities between the two genres are membrane-thin at best.

It's not a problem to serve the Hidden Object game audience, but please do not saturate the Adventure tag with these they way Steam has unfortunately done.
Have you actually PLAYED any recent ones, or is this just an uninformed rant post, showing off your ignorance? I tend to assume the latter.
Posted August 06, 2018
I remember people saying on this thread that "HOG games are for children" or this is just an advanced version of the childish game "I spy". Many (the majority of these games) are spooky, with really gothic or horror-dark themes. Some inspired or based on classic ghost stories, vampyres, werewolves, or some on stories from H.P. Lovecraft or Edgar Allan Poe. I remember playing a game from AERS based on H.G. Wells "The island of Dr. Moreau". A lot of illustrations are explicit scenes from crypts, skeletons, sinister graveyards, etc. Lots of places of these games are beautiful drawn and look like "decaying places", and the music not helps to stop thinking that.

So if you are Gomez or Morticia Addams, yes, these games are for your children.
Post edited August 06, 2018 by RPGDEX
Posted August 06, 2018
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Leroux:
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eiii: Thanks both of you for the explanation!

Could it be that these games are called "Wimmelbildspiele" in German?
Yes, that's their German name.

Edit: but you already knew that because I was late (note to myself: first read thread till the end then post).
Post edited August 06, 2018 by MarkoH01
Posted August 06, 2018
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Hoop: You could easily take out the HOG scenes and still be left with a decent to good adventure game.
That's true and I think a lot of people do not realize that. Thanks for pointing that out. Regarding "Adventure" category - it's quite wide here and I already disagree with some of games put there. However I agree it would be nice to separate subgenres somehow.

Also thanks for some interesting titles I've never heard of before.
Posted August 06, 2018
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Hoop: You could easily take out the HOG scenes and still be left with a decent to good adventure game.
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ciemnogrodzianin: That's true and I think a lot of people do not realize that.
I even strongly question it. Remove the Hidden Objects sections, and you end up with adventure games which qualities probably wouldn't pass curation (anywhere but on flash games websites). Their sub-par point and click adventure component is forgiven (evaluated with indulgence) because it's just a H.O.G.

And that's what makes steam's (and bigfsh's of course) categories frustrating. You seek a proper adventure game, you end up with a series of propositions that end up being H.O.G. with, if you're lucky, point and click components. Actually, steam allows you to use tags negatively, but then there's the opposite problem of games like The Room being tagged as H.O.G. and being left out by your filter.

To be fair, it's an old old issue with adventure games, since many platformers or castlevania-likes are being qualified as "adventure games" aswell. Adding H.O.G. to the category merely complicates it (because of screenshots playing on visual similarities). But claiming that someone who looks for some Dark Fall, Blackwell, Monkey Island or Deja Vu will have their itch scratched by a H.O.G's "adventure" component is a tad abusive.
Post edited August 06, 2018 by Telika
Posted August 06, 2018
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Telika: And that's what makes steam's (and bigfsh's of course) categories frustrating. You seek a proper adventure game, you end up with a series of propositions that end up being H.O.G.
?

I never have seen "a proper adventure game" there on Big Fish (Monkey Island, The Dig, Broken Sword...). I never cared to search there... they never hide from the casual games they sell. That's their business.
Post edited August 06, 2018 by RPGDEX
Posted August 06, 2018
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ciemnogrodzianin: I'm glad that you've liked it :)
You described the whole experience quite well. After a few titles you'll probably notice also that these games are also very repetitive. However they still work nice as a casual pause between something "more serious". Have fun!
Thanks again !
I finished the 1st NftD yesterday ! it took me more than an hour to finish the end of main story + the extra adventure. The extra adventure was a really nice surprise :)
I really don't regret my purchase and will certainly play it again in next years ! I really liked it and look forward playing 2 & 3.
A bit a shame that the genre isn't more "varied" according to your sayings though, there is a bunch of potential to vary a lot gameplay & difficulty !

I finally bought the Enigmatis games too, because of how I liked 1st NftD and all good things said here and there about this other trilogy. I'm less "caught" by the the atmosphere for now (it's a bit more "serious"), but it's still very enjoyable :)
Only one question : is there a way to play it in 4:3 ratio ? I wasn't too much bothered in NftD, but here I feel it more that it's stretched to my desktop resolution :P (16:9)
Post edited August 06, 2018 by Splatsch
Posted August 06, 2018
I think we are lucky that GOG is selling only "the collector's edition" of the HOGs. I was buying a lot of standard editions on BIG FISH until I realized the end of the game sometimes was somehow feeling cut, and the game without the extra episode or more extras.
Post edited August 06, 2018 by RPGDEX
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This is my favourite topic
Community
General discussionRelease: Hidden Object Games find their way to GOG.COM(283 posts)(283 posts)
(283 posts)