// PC GAMER — GAMING
I'm going to teach you to love hidden object games
Or at least to respect them. I'd settle for that. And if you feel like embarking on a journey of discovery, I can help with that, too.
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It's a fact: Hidden object games have a less-than-stellar reputation among the gamer cognoscenti. They're commonly viewed as low effort, vacuous, beneath the notice or caring of real gamers—a sort of proto-slop, in many ways, that predates the rise of AI. They're games your mom plays. Ewwww.
Dramatic exaggeration? Not really. Back in 2016, we published a story entitled "My shameful obsession with hidden object games on Steam," whose author chose to remain anonymous to avoid the consequences of their humiliating admission—and yeah, maybe that was a bit of dramatic exaggeration. But it vividly illustrates the point that hidden object games are not taken seriously by serious gamers.
I'm here to change that. I'm here to tell you that hidden object games are good, actually, and that it's a valid genre worthy of respect. Because videogames can be anything. Yes, violence tends to be at the core of most mainstream gaming experiences, your Calls of Duty and your Dotas and your Grand Thefts Auto and whatnot. But there's so much more out there. You can drive a bus, manage a cycling team, collect mushrooms on another planet, or play weird card games. So what's the big deal about just sitting back and looking for things?
I was introduced to the hidden object genre in 2009 by Find Your Own Way Home, an 'advergame' for an REO Speedwagon album of the same name. I was shocked to find that it was actually really good—here's an old review, from my pre-PCG days, if you're curious. Sure, it didn't hurt that I was a Speedwagon fan from way back, but it was just fun, too—relaxed and undemanding. Kind of like listening to nostalgic album-oriented rock, but that's a whole different conversation.
The Speedwagon rocks and I am not ashamed to say so!
I've played an awful lot of hidden object games in the years since, and I'm not going to pretend that they're all good. But in that sense, they're no different than any other genre. Which is the point: You may not like them, but it's time to start showing them some proper goddamn respect.
And you might like them! If you've made it this far, then I have to assume you're open to at least the possibility that maybe there might be something here worth giving a chance. And you better believe I can help get you started:
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