Rating:  

The first time I played Shiver: Vanishing Hitchhiker, I played the regular version and was impressed with the game then. I was offered the opportunity to play it again, except this time I was given the collector’s edition, and I have to say that it was still great the second time around.

Shiver: Vanishing Hitchhiker Collector’s Edition Storyline

The game opens with you driving along a rainy highway and thinking about a picture of you as a child standing next to a little girt holding a teddy bear. The scene then changes to show you picking up a female hitchhiker. You sense she is in trouble, but you leave her be. It isn’t until you are driving away after you drop her off at a creepy little town that you notice she left her teddy bear in your car. It’s then that you realize she’s the girl from the photo! Quickly, you return to the town. You must find her even if that means walking around that creepy town…

In this game, you play a male protagonist who is a photographer. When you actually have control of the game, you are standing at the edge of town and your goal is to find the girl. The first person you meet is an old woman who gets you started in the right direction.

I found the storyline to be compelling, though I think it could use a bit more backstory. However, Shiver: Vanishing Hitchhiker collector’s edition did suffer from the same problem that befalls pretty much all hidden object games in that sometimes information is revealed before it probably should be.

Shiver: Vanishing Hitchhiker Collector’s Edition Game Play

This is your standard hidden object adventure game. Navigation is point and click. The game offers two modes of play: casual and advanced. Even though I’ve played at least a hundred of these games, I always play in casual mode. So I don’t know how hard the advanced mode is. I’m sure it offers enough challenge for experts, though. There is the standard hint feature, but I think I only used it once.

To make the hidden object puzzles a little more interesting, the list would auto-repopulate up to five times. Each time you found one thing, something else would pop up on the list in its place. At first, I thought I was going crazy, but then I actually started paying more attention. Additionally, you had to put some pieces together to form an item on the list. This made the hidden object puzzles more engaging to play.

Another thing I found enjoyable about Shiver: Vanishing Hitchhiker collector’s edition is you have a camera that will take photos of ghosts. These photos help you complete the various in-game quests. This was something I had never come across before and really liked that unique bit of interactivity with the game environment.

The artwork rendered nicely, and the music and sound effects added to the game’s creepy environment. I particularly enjoyed the cut scenes and felt they moved the story along.

Overall Thoughts on Shiver: Vanishing Hitchhiker Collector’s Edition

This was my second time playing Shiver: Vanishing Hitchhiker and I enjoyed playing it the second time around as much as I did the first. Although the ending to the first part of the game was satisfactory, the bonus game play offered in the collector’s edition wrapped things up nicely.

There were some truly scary moments in the game. Like Rhiannon: Curse of the Four Branches, things sometimes just jump out of nowhere. I don’t mind this. In fact, I felt it really brought the story to life. However, if you don’t like being scared, then you probably should avoid playing this game.

One thing I did find odd about Shiver: Vanishing Hitchhiker is there is a house in the game that you cannot gain access to. When I played it the first time, I thought it was because the house was part of the bonus game play and I would only be able to access it if I bought the collector’s edition. However, the house was not accessible even in the collector’s edition. I thought this was weird. That’s akin to having someone put dessert on your plate but not giving you any silverware. Why did you put the dessert on my plate then?!

All in all, I found Shiver: Vanishing Hitchhiker collector’s edition to be a fun game and worth not just one, but two play throughs.

Shiver: Vanishing Hitchhiker Collector’s Edition Game Metadata:

• Rating:  

• Publisher: Artogon Casual Games Design and Development
• Release Date: February 2011
• Genre: Hidden Object Adventure Game
• Price: Collector’s Edition $13.00 for members | $19.99 for non-members
• Price: Standard Edition $6.99 for members | $9.99 for non-members
• Walkthrough: Shiver: Vanishing Hitchhiker Collector’s Edition Walkthrough