The great thing about the game industry right now is that there’s something for everyone. For every hardcore RPG or highly detailed simulation, there is also a casual title for those who just want to unwind or have a little fun. Cats of Mona Lisa: A Hidden Object Game certainly falls into that latter category. In fact, even more so than with most casual titles, Cats of Mona Lisa puts a lot of emphasis on the fact that it’s meant to be not only a stress-free experience, but also one that should help players to relax while playing. Its classic artwork and music certainly helps in that respect, as does the fact that there is no pressure, and you can explore the paintings at your own pace.
As Cats of Mona Lisa: A Hidden Object Game’s name implies, its developer Petite Games has created a fun and casual title where players are tasked with searching for hidden objects that are obscured within classic works of art. And in this case, the hidden objects just happen to be cats, which just makes the entire experience even more fun.
Now, hidden object titles with cats are nothing new. Where dogs have taken over poker playing in paintings, it seems felines are the masters of hidden object games. Over the past year or so we have looked at several cat themed hidden object games, from the black and white pencil line drawings of 100 Asian Cats (which is now part of a much larger series) to the extremely complex, quest-based adventure found in A Tower Full of Cats. Cats of Mona Lisa kind of falls in between those two games in terms of complexity but is also the easiest one to play.
Cats of Mona Lisa features paintings from eight famous artists including Vincent van Gogh and Claude Monet, and each artist has six paintings featured. The other artists include Peter Paul Rubens, Pieter Bruegel, Canaletto, Hubert Robert, Peder Mork Monsted and Frederik Kruseman. Oddly enough, the actual Mona Lisa which was painted by Leonardo da Vinci, wasn’t one of the paintings that was included.
The goal of Cats of Mona Lisa always the same. You first select one of the included artists and then are shown a total of six paintings. Once one of them is selected, it becomes the size of the screen and players are then tasked with finding ten cats hidden in the landscape. The cats each take on the look and style of the painting in question, which gives them an extra bit of camouflage. Clicking on a cat removes it from the painting and racks up the score by one until all ten of them are found. Some of the levels were pretty funny. For example, I had to chuckle while playing Daniel in the Lions’ Den by Peter Paul Rubens. Seeing all the scary lions and then the little house cats mixed in was too funny.
In general, it’s not very difficult to find the hidden cats in Cats of Mona Lisa. Most of the time I would find the first eight or nine fairly quickly, and then sometimes it took me a minute or two to locate the last couple. To help you out if you get stuck, the title offers up to three hints per level which basically reveals the hidden cats. There is also a magnifying glass tool to help players zoom in, although the cats are almost always pretty large so that tool is really not needed very much. Also, Cats of Mona Lisa times how long it takes for players to find all ten cats, but there is no pressure or anything like that. I suppose players could challenge their friends and family to see who can find all the cats in the paintings the quickest, but the timer is really just informational.
In addition to the classic artwork, Cats of Mona Lisa also plays classical music while you play. This enhances the atmosphere, adding a touch of class while also contributing to the relaxing vibes. The cats will also meow pretty loudly when you find them, which is kind of a shrill contrast to the soothing music and acts as a nice little audio reward each time you locate one.
Cats of Mona Lisa offers hidden object challenges and fun, and it can be played by anyone regardless of their age or skill level. And you might even learn a little bit about art history or develop a better appreciation for some of the world’s greatest works of art while you play. I found it quite relaxing to load up Cats of Mona Lisa: A Hidden Object Game and play through a few of the paintings after a stressful day of work or to unwind before bed. It’s available on Steam at a good value of just $5, making this unique casual title a great discovery, just like finding all the cats in its famous paintings.