Big City Adventure: Shanghai

There are many incredible cities and places around the world, and it’s a shame that most of us won’t get to visit the great majority of them. Each country has unique landscapes and cultures, not to mention architectural wonders that can date back a few millennia. However, thanks to the miracle of computers and the Internet, we can at least travel there virtually, and even interact with them a bit with the help of video games.

Big City Adventure: Shanghai is a hidden object game that takes place in Asia, namely in the great city of Shanghai. The gameplay is not very different from all the other hidden object games out there, but there’s the added bonus of learning cool facts about the city in the progress. Other than that, you just have to keep your eyes peeled and search for the requested items.

Each level is a unique location, and a lot of work went into the environments when it comes to the level of detail they display. Obviously, everything is static and pre-rendered, but at least the places are inspired from actual locations. The objects you have to find are not very exciting, and they also repeat a lot over the levels, but the challenge is what keeps you coming back, especially if you play with time limits.

After every hidden object stage, there is a bonus round with a different puzzle to solve. These are by no means difficult or intricate, but they do a good job to distract you from the repetitive gameplay. Whether you have to solve a maze, connect two points using multiple puzzle pieces, or just complete a jigsaw, at least there is enough variety to help you unwind and relax your eyes.

Speaking of which, the graphics are not impressive from a technical point of view, but they are very detailed in spite of that. Each stage contains an impressive amount of objects and other small details, which also make it more difficult to find the requested items. The soundtrack has some oriental tunes in it as well, in case you really want to set the mood for an Asian holiday.

In case you are familiar with the series already, Big City Adventure: Shanghai is but more of the same, except for the fact that it features a different city. Hence, fans of the hidden object genre should feel right at home in this new release, especially if you are up for a challenge.