Does anyone really like video-games?

[Michaël Samyn]

I highly recommend Jeff Minter's games, then!
I agree. As I've said before: videogames that are not media are better games, videogames that are not games are better media.

[axcho]

Right now it seems that most important part of a Hidden Object Game, that makes it better or worse in terms of quality, popularity, sales, is the notgame part, which you could describe as the "narrative" part.

Isn't this the same in AAA titles?

Maybe. But to a much lesser extent than you see in hidden object games, I'd argue.

On a related note, the company where I work is looking for a designer to lead a new hidden object team, so if you any of you need an outlet for your story ideas, now would be a good time to send in your resume...

[ghostwheel]

I like hidden object games but not because of the stories. Every one I've played is incredibly cheesy and cliche. The titles like "Princess Investigations: The Evil Mansion Mystery" (made up name btw) pretty much sums them all up. I cant speak for anyone else but I seriously doubt many of us here would be a good fit at a casual game company, despite our affection for the genre.

[axcho]

We joke about that stuff too. So far the two hidden object games we've released are incredibly cheesy (intentionally), but the one that I've been working on lately, which should be out soon, is much more interesting from a story perspective and not meant to be cheesy. And all the games we have planned and in production are similarly less cheesy. It looks like our trajectory is toward more and more interesting stories.

But no pressure. It's just an opportunity I wanted to share.