So we’ve been taking something of a trip down memory lane, with apps that remind us of our youth. Yesterday was UNO, tomorrow we plan to talk about Air Hockey, and today we have that childhood classic shrunk down to mobile form: Where’s Waldo. Yes, the slightly geeky-looking young man in the red and white stripes with the big round glasses is still around, and now he is challenging you to find him – and his friends – all over again, in a game that is packed with options and puzzles that will test your mental endurance.

There is a lot going on in this app. First of all, you can choose between practice sessions (which help you learn what you need to do in order to successfully complete all of the different types of puzzles), and there is the Challenge mode, where you must successfully complete 10 puzzles in a row in order to move on to an actual “Where’s Waldo” picture that has assorted hidden people and objects to find. If you can master all 10 puzzles, and find all of the hidden objects fast enough, you can move on to the next round. After you successfully complete a Waldo search puzzle you increase in rank in the game. You start as a Waldo Watcher, and let me tell you, I spent a lot of time stuck at this level! If you get one wrong out of the 10 puzzles, it’s right back to the beginning of the challenge!

Happily, I have reached the next level (Odlaw – he’s the one in yellow and black), but it starts to get tougher in a hurry, as you now have less time to complete each puzzle. At the first challenge level, you get 30 seconds to complete each puzzle. Now at the Odlaw level, you only have 25 seconds per puzzle, and in some cases, you’ll be glad you have those extra seconds.

So, let’s talk about some of the puzzles, too. There are matching games (pairs, and memory based), re-arranging games, find the odd one out or the thing that is new, games that test your observational skills, as well as your spotting skills, and much more. As far as a game that requires you to concentrate, and really pay attention to the little details, this one captures the essence of what “Where’s Waldo” is all about. I can see my kids getting quite lost in this game very easily (I haven’t shared it with them yet!), and for the rest of us (the grown-ups), it is eye-opening to see what you may have missed when you thought you had the right answer.

Look closely at the screenshot below – can you spot the Waldo that is different from all the rest? Go ahead, you have 30 seconds.

It’s the one in the lower left … What’s missing? Clever right? And subtle, too.

All of the characters that you would expect to see from this childhood series make an appearance in the app, and the games within the Challenge mode, being timed, ensure that you can play for a short amount of time if you want to and still have a lot of fun. The game will also save your progress, if you need to stop and come back to it later.

The game includes a detailed Help section that helps you figure out all of the built-in puzzles, and at the same time, each puzzle provides a summary of what you must do before you begin.

If you enjoyed trying to find Waldo in all of those oversized books as a child – or if you want to introduce someone new to these visual puzzles for the first time – Where’s Waldo for your Nokia device is a great place to start.

Note: Where’s Waldo in Ovi Store is for consumers in North America. In other part’s of the world, you’ll be looking for Where’s Wally! (We’ll add a link shortly.) And right now, both versions of the game are available in Ovi Store for only $0.99 (USD) or 1 Euro.