BOO!  Bet you didn’t see me there.  That’s because I was hidden.  Like an object.  Possibly in a game.  Huh… hidden object game.  That’s got a nice ring to it.  I think I might be on to something here.  Mortimer, fetch me my pen!

We’ve all wondered it at some point, whether it was the first time you saw a graveyard posing as a junkyard, after finding your hundredth kitchen utensil, or upon discovering a chainsaw in a bedroom: why are Hidden Object games so messy?  Besides the obvious response of, “That’s the whole point,” I think we deserve to know the real reason.  Which is definitely one or all of the following five. 

Perhaps my favorite ride at Disneyland is the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror. With meticulous detail and theming of everything from the lineup to the attendants, it wraps you up in the creepy tale of a hotel haunted by the events of a fateful night during the Golden Age of Hollywood. It dances gleefully between reverence for classic films and for classic scares. Even if you haven’t taken a trip on the Tower, though, bottle that feeling. You may just be getting a game that does the trick. 

Few things in this world are as deeply satisfying – especially to a Gamezebo reader – as a good hidden object game. But with more than a few years of casual search’n’find behind us, which HOG experiences have really managed to stand out? Gamezebo wants to know: which hidden object games are your favorites?

Two weeks ago, Zynga invited the press to check out its new office and get a sneak peak on its upcoming games and projects.

Lost amidst the announcements around Project Z (a Facebook-based social games network that I am not even sure Zynga fully gets what its all about) to upcoming game launches of CastleVille (CityVille meets a RPG with a touch of Shrek, very cool) and a slew of casino style and mobile games, was the announcement around Hidden Chronicles, Zynga’s first foray into the hidden object genre.

Hidden Chronicles may do for hidden object games what FarmVille did for strategy and simulation games, making the hidden object genre the most popular casual game genre of them all.

Hidden object games have been the lifeblood of the PC and Mac casual games market for years but have been seemingly absent on Facebook. . . . until now.

We just reviewed and gave Mystery Manor, a HOG on Facebook, 4 stars. And just moments ago, Playdom officially released Gardens of Time. I got a sneak peak of Gardens of Time at GDC and liked what I saw.

Check out both Mystery Manor and Gardens of Time and tell us: will hidden object games be as successful on Facebook as they have as PC and Mac downloads?

Like oil and water, hidden object games and Facebook are not supposed to mix. Facebook games are meant to be social and hidden object games are traditionally a solitary affair.

Apparently, no one gave Playdom this memo. Playdom showed me a demo of their upcoming social hidden object game, Gardens of Time, at the Game Developer Conference this week.

I don’t have any screen shots to show you yet (it’s still under embargo). But, I am allowed to share with you my impressions. I can fairly say, as the owner of a games site that has reviewed about 1000 hidden object games in the past 5 years, I am thoroughly impressed.