In Hidden Paws Mystery, you become the “Seeker of Cats,” searching for scared, cold, and hungry cats longing to find their way home.
This latest release from publisher Silesia Games and developer Manic Hyena challenges you to locate exactly 100 cats and their yarn, hidden across 20 whimsical levels.
Gameplay
Hidden Paws Mystery includes 20 levels, each showing in the bottom-left corner how many cats and yarn are hidden within that level. To advance, you'll need to find a minimum number of cats or yarn before moving forward. Personally, I found it most satisfying to complete each level fully before moving on, but if you get stuck, don't worry"”you can always return to any previously played level through the main menu's level select option.
The game includes a limited hint system, though it won’t directly help you find the cats. If you press “Y,” glowing streams of light will guide you to areas where the missing yarn might be hiding.
In this cat-seeking adventure, you’ll need to interact with various objects to uncover all the hidden kitties and yarn. Most levels allow you to open doors, windows, crates, and treasure chests, or even smash items like vases and pumpkins. If it looks like you can click and interact with it, you likely can"”which makes the search even more challenging!
The Dreaded Cursor Issue
While Hidden Paws Mystery focuses on exploring levels to find hidden objects, this aspect is where the game stumbles, at least in its transition from the earlier PC version to console. The controls feel overly sensitive and frustrating, often making navigation an exercise in patience rather than fun. Moving around the map can be painfully slow, and attempting to zoom in or rotate often leads to getting stuck on environmental items. Levels with tall trees, in particular, become especially cumbersome.
The challenge of finding well-hidden items is worsened by these control issues. Some items are tucked away in places where you really need fluid movement to see inside buckets or under objects, but the awkward zooming and rotating make this more of a chore than a challenge. I even had instances where yarn was partially exposed, yet the game wouldn't recognize my clicks, even though they were clearly aimed at the item. One piece of yarn took nearly five minutes of finagling for the game to finally register my click. This all but ruined the experience, turning what should have been a relaxing search into a frustrating struggle.
Final Thoughts
I’ve enjoyed every Hidden Cats game up until now, but this one completely misses the mark. The levels are beautifully designed, but games like this rely on precise cursor movement for smoothly navigating and selecting tiny items. Here, the controls are a massive letdown. On PC, using a mouse would likely make movement fluid, but on console, it’s a frustrating test of patience that undermines what could have been an enjoyable experience.
Sadly, I can't recommend this game. Navigating through the levels left me with a headache, constantly battling with the controls. Allowing smoother movement through items in each level might have solved this issue. Ironically, I just mentioned in our latest Community Voice article about improper cursor movement being one of my biggest gaming pet peeves. You can check that article out here: Gamer Social Club’s Gaming Pet Peeves.
Hidden Paws Mystery was reviewed on the Xbox Series X, with a review copy provided by Silesia Games. The game was released on October 30, 2024 on Xbox, PlayStation and Nintendo Switch, following its initial release on Steam on December 18, 2018.
