Comparison

Hidden City vs Grim Tales 17

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Hidden City

Embark on a thrilling detective adventure to rescue a friend from a mysterious phantom city. Solve puzzles, explore dark dungeons, and battle strange creatures as you uncover secrets and confront evil.

Highlights
  • Hidden object scenes
  • Quests and puzzles
  • Dungeon exploration
  • Combat against monsters and cults
  • Offline play
  • Friend assistance
Features
Read full description

Hidden City is a hidden object detective adventure for players who enjoy cozy mystery games, search-and-find puzzles, story-rich quests and richly detailed scenes. Explore a mystical Victorian city, find hidden objects, follow clues, solve puzzles, meet unique characters and uncover magical secrets in the City of Shadows. Your next investigation awaits in a game where detective cases, beautiful search scenes, puzzle variety and magical events blend into one captivating mystery story. Look closer, collect clues and discover why every object, note and artifact matters. What will you investigate? Search atmospheric scenes filled with hidden items, evidence, notes, artifacts, keys, symbols, curiosities and visual clues. Every location invites careful observation and rewards players who love to find meaningful details in beautiful environments. Explore foggy streets, ornate halls, manor-like rooms, curious shops, gardens, arcades, laboratories and magical city districts. Each place supports the mystery and turns object search into part of the investigation. Which search modes can you play? Hidden City keeps the main investigation fresh with different modes designed to test your observation skills: • Words mode: Classic hidden object searching using text lists. • Silhouettes mode: Visual challenges based on object shapes. • Night mode: Focused searches in dim scenes using a spotlight. • Pairs mode: Matching identical or logically related objects to test your attention. These modes support players who enjoy search-and-find adventures, visual puzzles, detective games and finding hidden items through careful observation. Are there mini-games and puzzles? Yes. The core search mechanics are supported by puzzle modes that add variety without taking over the main experience. Take a break from the investigation and play through: • Spot the difference: Compare two scenes using sharp observation. • Match-3 levels: Crystal and gem matching for satisfying puzzle breaks. • Brain teasers: Logic mini-games, memory challenges and story-driven riddles. This mix works well for players who want a detective game with brain teasers, a mystery puzzle with clues or a search-and-find adventure with match-3 elements. How does the story unfold? Follow narrative-driven quests, character stories, special cases and event investigations. Assemble artifact collections, solve anomalies, complete requests and unlock rewards that help you continue your detective journey. Every quest connects detailed scenes, puzzle challenges, magical discoveries and story progression into one polished mystery adventure. Play Hidden City your way • Play offline: Continue your investigation anywhere, even without an internet connection. • Follow the story: Return to character quests, detective cases and magical events as your mystery unfolds. • Regular updates: Discover new cases, quests, search scenes and special events added over time. • Cross-device sync: Save your progress and switch between your devices. While this game is absolutely free to play, you have the ability to unlock optional bonuses via in-app purchases from within the game. You may disable in-app purchases in your device settings. You can play this game even if you’re offline! Game available in: English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Brazilian Portuguese, Russian, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Spanish, Ukrainian. ____________________________ Sign up now for a weekly round-up of the best from G5 Games! https://www.g5.com/e-mail ____________________________ Download more great games here: https://store.g5.com G5 Games — World of Adventures™! Collect them all! Search for ""g5"" in the App Store! ____________________________ Visit us: https://www.g5.com Watch us: https://www.youtube.com/g5enter Find us: https://www.facebook.com/HiddenCityGame/ Join us: https://www.instagram.com/hiddencity_ Follow us: https://x.com/g5games

About

Grim Tales 17

Embark on a thrilling detective adventure to uncover the source of a deadly tragedy threatening a family. Solve intricate puzzles, find hidden objects, and explore mysterious locations to unravel secrets before it's too late.

Highlights
  • Hidden object scenes
  • Solve puzzles
  • Find lost items
  • Mystery detective gameplay
  • Explore unusual locations
  • Mini-games
  • Collector's Edition bonuses
Features
Read full description

Help Alice uncover the source of the tragedy that threatens the Gray family! Play the hidden object game, solve puzzles, find lost items and enjoy mystery detective! ________________________________________________________________________ Will you manage to uncover the mysteries of Grim Tales: Guest From The Future? Immerse yourself in a mystery detective, find hidden objects and solve riddles. Explore unusual locations and investigate the fever that killed all the Grays in the future before it’s too late! Your teenage daughter Alice needs your expertise to uncover the source of a tragedy that threatens to end the Gray family line forever! A mysterious illness has already claimed several victims, and any of the Grays could be next. Are you up to the task of discovering how it started, and more importantly, why? Things may not be as simple as they seem... IS THIS THE END OF THE GRAYS? Can you lift the curse that someone put on the family of the Grays? Do everything you can to rescue your daughter who came to you from the future and save the rest of your family! WHO IS THE SPIRIT THAT HAUNTS ANNA AND ALICE GRAY AND INTERRUPTS THE INVESTIGATION? Uncover the truth by solving engaging puzzles and mysterious mini-games. FIND OUT WHY ALL EVENTS STARTED HAPPENING IN ANNA GRAY’S NEPHEW Complete hidden object scenes and enjoy spectacular mystic locations. PLAY AS FAMOUS DETECTIVE’S DAUGHTER AND FIND OUT WHO KIDNAPPED YOUR MOTHER IN THE BONUS CHAPTER! Uncover the mystery of Anna Gray’s kidnapping - take your grandfather Richard as companion and enjoy the bonuses of Collector’s Edition! Grim Tales: Guest From The Future is a hidden objects game where you need to seek and find missing objects like Sherlock. Stop the fever that's killing the Gray family and solve the unsolved mysteries and puzzles. Enjoy replayable HOPs, mini-games and exclusive сontent in this mystery detective game! Zoom in on the scenes to find items, and use hints if you get stuck. Discover more from Elephant Games! Note that this is a free trial version of the hidden objects game. You can get the full version by means of an in-app purchase. Elephant Games is a casual game developer. Explore our full game library: http://elephant-games.com/games/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elephant_games/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/elephantgames YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@elephant_games Privacy Policy: https://elephant-games.com/privacy/ Terms and Conditions: https://elephant-games.com/terms/

Screenshots

Hidden City4 screens
Grim Tales 174 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Grim Tales 17 at none against Hidden City's shown. Grim Tales 17 also leads on rating (4.7 vs 4.3) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 15.0). Hidden City's advantage is update cadence (every 9 days vs every 6 months) and ratings volume (95K vs 434). On price, in-app purchases, monetization model and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Hidden City sells 10 one-off in-app purchases and Grim Tales 17 sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Grim Tales 17 holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Hidden City has 95K ratings behind it against 434, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 72% of Hidden City's written reviews are positive against 64% of Grim Tales 17's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Hidden City ships an update every 9 days, Grim Tales 17 every 6 months. The most recent releases landed on November 5, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
Hidden City versus Grim Tales 17: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterHidden CityGrim Tales 17
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.3 (95K ratings)4.7 (434 ratings) — better
Positive reviews72.3% of reviews — better63.6% of reviews
Number of ratings95K — better434
Update frequencyEvery 9 days — betterEvery 6 months
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#122 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.012.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size320 MB810 MB
Age rating9+9+
DeveloperG5 Entertainment ABElephant Games AR LLC

Customer experience

Hidden City

All ratings95,045 ratings
Positive85.6%
Neutral10.4%
Negative4.0%
Written reviews2,587 reviews
Positive72.3%
Neutral10.7%
Negative17.0%

Grim Tales 17

All ratings429 ratings
Positive94.9%
Neutral3.5%
Negative1.6%
Written reviews22 reviews
Positive63.6%
Neutral9.1%
Negative27.3%

User reviews

Hidden City

From 95K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Challenging
  • 👍 Fun and challenging
  • 👍 Great fun
  • 👍 Fabulous
  • 👍 Never knew I could be such a clever person

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Hidden City: You have a VERY offensive ad in your line up
  • 💰 Too costly, not enough bang for your hard earned bucks
  • 💰 Game is the most frustrating I have ever played, very little in return for achieving goals
  • 💰 Game is getting more and more difficult to play without making in-app purchases
  • 🐛 Quite often when visiting friends, the game freezes and I can no longer continue playing

Grim Tales 17

From 434 App Store ratings

What we love

  • ❤️ Affordable and enjoyable gameplay
  • 👍 Good storyline and puzzles
  • 🌟 High-quality graphics and design
  • 🤩 Series continuity is appreciated
  • 💡 Engaging and addictive gameplay

Room to improve

  • 📉 Bonus chapter continuity issues
  • ⏳ Games can feel too short
  • 🤔 Some plot points lack explanation
  • 💰 Perceived high price for game length
  • 😵 Difficulty finding morphing objects

Bugs and requests

Hidden City

Reported bugs

6 issues
  • Can not access the game to sign in after changing password
  • Game freezes and crashes frequently
  • Losing progress and achievements when switching devices
  • Glitches with events and mini-games
  • Disappearing items and rewards
Show 1 more
  • Compatibility issues with older devices

Requested features

9 requests
  • Give more free rubies, game is too expensive
  • Make the game less expensive
  • Give more rewards for completing goals
  • Make the game less frustrating and more enjoyable
  • Fix the glitches and technical issues
Show 4 more
  • Provide better instructions and tutorials
  • Offer an ad-free version for a one-time purchase
  • Make the mini-games less difficult and frustrating
  • Improve the social features and gifting system

Grim Tales 17

Reported bugs

8 issues
  • 🐛 Screen sliding/unlocked on iPhone
  • 🐛 Game won't start, logo spins
  • 🐛 Game not available in US (despite prior play)
  • 🐛 Bonus game is buggy
  • 🐛 Game play screen doesn't load
Show 3 more
  • 🐛 Game crashes
  • 🐛 Screen falls off the side of iPhone
  • 🐛 Cannot see items on screen

Requested features

3 requests
  • Longer game duration for the price
  • More explanation in bonus chapters
  • Improved continuity in bonus chapters

In-app purchases

10 purchases

Hidden City

One-time10
  • Special Offer$0.99
  • Cluster of Rubies$1.99
  • Tray of Rubies$4.99
Show 7 more
  • Super Deal$4.99
  • Platter of Rubies$9.99
  • Hyper Deal$9.99
  • Drawer of Rubies$19.99
  • Special Deal$19.99
  • Trunk of Rubies$49.99
  • Stockpile of Rubies$99.99
1 purchases

Grim Tales 17

One-time1
  • Full Content$6.99

Questions

Is Hidden City free?
Hidden City is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Grim Tales 17 free?
Grim Tales 17 is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Hidden City or Grim Tales 17?
Grim Tales 17 is rated higher. Hidden City averages 4.3 out of 5 from 95K ratings, while Grim Tales 17 averages 4.7 from 434 ratings.
Do Hidden City or Grim Tales 17 have ads?
Hidden City shows ads; Grim Tales 17 does not.
Which is updated more often, Hidden City or Grim Tales 17?
Hidden City ships an update every 9 days, and Grim Tales 17 every 6 months. Most recently, Hidden City was updated on November 5, 2026 and Grim Tales 17 on November 3, 2026.

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