IPhone game turns ordinary into fantastic

When what you can see with your own eyes isn’t interesting enough, there’s always augmented reality. Sure, Boston Common has an excellent playground, paddle boats, an ice rink for cheap dates, and sprawling meadows for rallies. But where are the dragons, fairies, and genies?The Hidden Park (www.thehiddenpark.com) brings these fantastic creatures to your iPhone camera’s view of the Common. For me, a guy who failed to plan anything for my 6-year-old, Maeve, this summer, the game will help keep her engaged on those days we find ourselves strolling through town.The $7 iPhone game mixes augmented reality with turn-by-turn directions, geocaching, and animation.The phone’s camera and GPS transponder set the stage for Hidden Park. Armed with a Dora the Explorer-like map, you follow a troll named Trutton past the Common’s benches, over its bridges, and around its ponds. Hidden Park uses a location-based service to recognize your iPhone’s proximity to particular landmarks and then provides directions to the next spot in the game.You will be challenged with riddles and puzzles along the way. And you’ll find the answers in real-life sights and signs. In this way, Hidden Park works like one of the augmented reality tours from Boston-based Untravel (www.untravelmedia.com).Hidden Park works in a handful of other public parks and gardens. Visitors to Central Park and Kensington Gardens, for example, can also play the game on their iPhones.As you photograph various landmarks around the Common, you’ll find Hidden Park cartoon characters appearing in your shots. When you’re done, you will have an album full of things you never really saw. I think of it as meeting Walt Disney characters, without worrying about who might be lurking inside the suit.