Hidden Object Games: How to Play and Find Items Faster
Updated
In a hidden object game you search a busy picture for the items on a list and click each one you find. To find them faster, zoom in where the game allows it, sweep the scene one section at a time, and look for each item's shape and color rather than its name. Spot-the-difference games use the same skills, with two pictures instead of a list.
What are hidden object games?
Hidden object games are puzzle games built around searching a cluttered scene. They grew out of print puzzles such as the I Spy books, which gave you a list of objects to find in a crowded photo or drawing. In the catalog you will meet several kinds.
| Kind | What you look for | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Item list | Every object on a list, each one different | Hidden Object Time Travel, Paws Off My Clues |
| One kind of item | Many copies of one thing hidden across a picture | Find the Kitten: Spot the Cat, Tractors Hidden Tires |
| Open map | Hundreds of items on a large map that opens up as you go | Lost Things |
| Spot the difference | Changes between two nearly identical pictures | Spot The Difference: Seasons |
| Odd one out | The single item that does not match the rest | One Odd Out |
How to play a hidden object game
- Read the list, or note what you are hunting: stars, keys, cats or differences.
- Scan the scene, and click or tap an item when you see it.
- A correct find is marked or crossed off the list.
- Find everything to finish the level, in many games before a timer runs out.
- When you are stuck, use a hint if the game has one.
Tips to find hidden objects faster
Zoom in where you can
Small items are hardest to see at full view. Find the Kitten: Spot the Cat lets you zoom and pan across its scenes, and Infinity Zoom Art shrinks some pictures down to small buttons that you click to zoom in and search.
Scan in a grid
Do not let your eyes wander. Split the picture into four or nine imaginary boxes and sweep each one from left to right and top to bottom before you move to the next. Corners and edges are easy to skip, so give them their own pass.
Search for shape and color, not the name
The list says "key", but what you are really looking for is a small outline in a certain color. Items hide by matching the colors around them, by being partly covered, by sitting at an odd angle, or by being much bigger or smaller than you expect. Picture the outline before you start looking.
Do not click at random
Some games punish guessing. In Christmas Vehicles Hidden Keys, clicking in the wrong place several times takes an extra five seconds off the clock. Click only when you are sure.
Know the clock
Timers differ a lot from game to game, so read the rules once.
| Game | Time rule from its description |
|---|---|
| Tractors Hidden Tires | 10 tires per picture; 80 seconds on the first level and 5 seconds less on each level after, down to 55 |
| Fairy Woods Hidden Objects | 30 seconds for each level |
| Hidden Object Easter | Finish the level within the time to get a bonus |
| Lost Things | No time limit |
| Color Madness Spot the Differences | Unlimited time |
Save hints for the last items
The last items on the list are often the hardest to see, so that is where a hint helps most. In Lost Things, a hint moves the camera to the object and highlights it, and new parts of the map open once you have found enough items.
Spot-the-difference habits
Spot-the-difference levels ask for a different kind of looking: you compare rather than search.
- Compare one small area at a time. Look at a corner of the left picture, then the same corner on the right, and work across in strips.
- Know how many to find. Find 6 Differences always hides six, so you know when to stop.
- Check the usual kinds of change: an object missing or added, a color swapped, a shape resized or turned, a pattern altered.
- Look at the background, not only the main subject. Sky, floors and walls are easy places to hide a small change.
- When you find nothing, look away for a second, then scan again in a different order.
Spot The Difference: Seasons asks you to find every difference without using a hint, across 80 levels of spring, summer, fall and winter scenes in five game modes. Spot The Difference Wild West adds a clock and hints for the tricky spots.
Play hidden object games
Spectral Seek sets its search in a haunted mansion where the finds get trickier the deeper you go, Hidden Turtle hides turtles in detailed scenes, and One Odd Out gives you 60 seconds to score as many points as you can by finding the item that is different. Paws Off My Clues fills beaches and ancient ruins with hidden objects, and you finish each level by finding everything on its list.
The rest of the catalog's search games are in the hidden object collection. If letter grids are more your thing, word search tips uses the same scanning habits.
Hidden object games FAQ
What is the difference between hidden object and spot the difference?
A hidden object game gives you a list, or one kind of item, to find in a single scene. Spot the difference gives you two nearly identical pictures and asks what changed. The scanning habits above work for both.
Are there hidden object games without a timer?
Yes. Lost Things has no time limit, and Color Madness Spot the Differences gives you unlimited time.
What does HOPA mean?
HOPA stands for hidden object puzzle adventure: a hidden object game with point-and-click exploration and puzzles alongside the search scenes, as described in Wikipedia's article on hidden object games.
Can I play hidden object games on a phone?
The site works in the browser of a phone, a tablet and a computer. Find the Kitten: Spot the Cat describes touch controls on mobile as well as play on desktop.
Zoom in, sweep the scene in sections and click only when you are sure: those three habits clear more scenes in less time.
