Mystery P.I.: The Vegas Heist (PC) Review
by David Rosen
If you think you've got the eye to be a Mystery P.I., what better place to start than Las Vegas? “Mystery P.I.: The Vegas Heist,” the new entry in Popcap/SpinTop's hidden object series brings the seek-and-find to Las Vegas with some cool locales and addictive game play.
At first glance, the game is as simple as the hidden object games you might see on the Touchmaster games at a bar. You're given a list of objects to find within a picture. Everything from screwdrivers to stereo speakers, frogs and dollar signs are hidden (and sometimes hidden frustratingly well) within the scene. But “Mystery P.I.” goes far beyond the competition by adding a whole slew of enhancements as well as mini-games to break up the item-seeking.
The biggest thing that sets the series apart is the story. In this game, you are a detective trying to find clues to solve a robbery of $4 billion from a new Las Vegas casino, set to open in 24 hours! Finding clues within the scenes leads you to mini-games such a word search or a jigsaw puzzle that will lead you to more clues. Now of course you aren't exactly required to pay attention to what's going on... this is a casual game we're talking about after all, but the story adds a lot of value to the overall game.
Another addition, which is extremely addictive is the inclusion of a hidden fingerprint, key, and poker chip in every scene. Trying to find these adds a significant challenge to every level of the game, especially when these items could change size, shape, or even just be the word “fingerprint” or “key.”
The best part about “Mystery P.I.” is the fact that, although there are only a limited number of locales (really the only low point of the game is the repetition of the same scenes), each time you revisit a scene, you will be asked to look for different items. I'm not sure of the exact number of combinations, but it seems like you can revisit the same scene at least 5 or 6 times without ever having to look for the same object twice. There's got to be at least 50 clickable objects in each area, giving the game immense replay value. Still, as I said, it would be nice if they could have allowed you to explore some more locales... This is Las Vegas after all! They could have brought us to a magic showroom, different casinos, or even a buffet (that one is genius if you ask me... Popcap are you listening?!??!). But at least with what we have, the seemingly limitless amount of hidden objects still keeps the limited amount of locales fresh for a while.
While I am somewhat of a hard-core, casual gamer, it is interesting to see how when my dad walked up and noticed me playing, he was instantly hooked, helping me spot a dollar bill and a pen in one of the scenes. It's just more proof that games like “Mystery P.I.” have a huge mass-appeal.
One last thing
before I close this review and get back to playing... I still haven't
found all of the keys and chips. Once you do, it unlocks the “Ultimate
Seek & Find” mode, which is almost like a 2nd game that ditches the story and
the rules and lets you just try to find every object in every scene. Can
it get much more awesome than that? I think not...
You can download a demo now at www.popcap.com.