Notebooks and Getting Stumped

Getting that perfect lead in a mystery is what thrills a good detective! When solving a mystery, every once in a while there is that "stumped" moment, where the detective feels like he or she has reached a dead-end or simply can't move forward in the case. Times like these call for taking a step back, looking at what clues have been gathered, and re-evaluating the situation. Every good detective keeps notes!

A small collection of post-it notes, notebooks, and a few paper planes that are good for sending cryptic messages across the room are found on my desk:Yesterday I got stumped on a new mystery and had to re-read what notes I had taken. This is a good practice (the note reading, not the getting stumped habit), especially when one becomes forgetful, or scatter-brained. After a detective re-reads the written notes and re-thinks the situation, a good lead coming out of seemingly nowhere is satisfactory! (Especially when you just discover something in your notes that sends you on a new trail of clues.)

Notebooks, journals, task lists and hint hot lines are all great ways to help get a detective back into the game. What style is your preference when you get stumped on a case?

~Little Jackalope~

Shopping for The Captive Curse

Field trip! A few of us workers went on a trip today to visit a few stores and see how The Captive Curse looks on the shelves. Looking sharp!
It's always exciting to go into a store and see a Nancy Drew game in the "New Releases" section, and then we walk down the aisle to find our other latest games on display such as Shadow at the Water's Edge, Trail of the Twister, and Secrets Can Kill Remastered.
Did you hear? The newsletter has a new design! The issue that went out today featured The Captive Curse release, so it's looking pretty sharp to present the game's grand entrance. Gotta look well-dressed for an appropriate introduction, aye? To subscribe to the newsletter, just follow the signs on our home page, or visit the newsletter archive to view all of the past issues.

Are you following us on Twitter? We have a new contest running there! Head over to participate for a chance to win a prize!

~Little Jackalope~

The Captive Curse

It's finally here!The Captive Curse has been released and is now in stores! Whoo-hoo!! A press release was posted on our site.
Today we celebrated with a German feast: bratwurst, pretzels, and strudel among many other dishes. Check it out:Yum! Have you made it to the store to get this new game? We are excited to hear what you think!
~Little Jackalope~

An Exciting Week: Starting Now!

We are off for an exciting week (as stated in the title) ^.^

The Captive Curse will be released in stores tomorrow, June 28th 2011! (But of course, you can already get it from us in both physical and digital form). Anyways, we are preparing for this highly anticipated release, and I'm super excited!! I heard that we may celebrate tomorrow with a German-themed feast (dressing up in appropriate costume was encouraged). I plan on wearing my "Karl hat" seen here:
To start off the week, the downloads section on The Captive Curse page went up, which includes a screen saver and some wallpapers, several of which are mobile phone wallpapers.

On to more important matters! Congrats to Erin M. from CT for winning the Weekend Puzzle #109 contest! Erin was picked randomly from the collection of the correct answer entries and won a digital download of The Captive Curse.

*A note about these contests: there is a place on our message board specifically for discussing our "Blogs and Tweets". In this forum, you may talk about and help each other figure out the weekend puzzles. A few clever fans were able to solve the puzzle, and correctly posted the answer there, but since this was a contest, it doesn't feel very fair to those who want to figure it out on their own. So going forward, whenever the Weekend Puzzle hosts a contest, please be considerate and hide your answers in spoiler code (or not even show it) so everyone will have a fair chance :) Thanks!

Here's the solution: [Letter your keyboard letter keys left to right like so: Q=A, W=B, E=C and so on. The keys should be in alphabetical order.]
Take the puzzle and decode using your keyboard (don't forget to insert those spaces!) and you will get this answer: [February Twenty Two This Year]. Now find the post dated this, and identify the image in that post. It is a sketch of [A Well]. This is the answer you were to send in. Congrats! There were a lot of great guesses, and many of you hit it on the nail!

Until tomorrow!
~Little Jackalope~

Weekend Puzzle #109 = Contest!

Happy Friday everyone! This weekend puzzle is another contest!! Please read carefully:

1. Solve the weekend puzzle below.
2. When you think you have the right answer, email it to solved@herinteractive.com with the subject line "Weekend Puzzle" and include your name, phone number and mailing address in the email.
3. The prize? The Captive Curse game digital download! 4. The time? Contest begins now and ends at 10am PST on Monday, June 27th.
5. One winner will be randomly drawn from all of the correct entries by 5pm, Monday, June 27th. (We want to be fair and give everyone a chance.) :)

•Each contestant may only enter once.
•Entries must be received before 10am PST Monday, June 27th.
•This contest is open to everyone.
•Entries will only be accepted by email
Be sure to include your contact information with your submission as winner will be contacted upon completion of the contest. Good luck to everyone!

Here's the puzzle!
Directions: Name the object pictured in the post below.

Y T W K X Q K N (SPACE) Z V T F Z N (SPACE) Z V G (SPACE) Z I O L (SPACE) N T Q K

Hint: You have the keys to solve this.

Good luck sleuths!
~Little Jackalope~

Spying on Busy Workers

Here at the office there are workers who are busying themselves with their individual tasks. A lot of art in the art department is needed to be turned in by tomorrow, puzzles are being tried and tested in the production department, and marketing is gearing up for the official launch of The Captive Curse on Tuesday! It's a busy Thursday, and I like to snoop and spy on what everyone is doing.

I got to take a peak at some exciting video an artist made that is going into the next game, but alas, I cannot reveal any more information about this. :(

While sneaking at peak over the shoulders of the production department, I walked past the most tempting bowl of chocolates, seen here:I wonder if they keep a count on these, because after I snapped a picture, three pieces *mysteriously* went missing. ^.~

Tomorrow we have another weekend puzzle contest! Come back then to learn more and participate for a chance to win....a prize that you will have to come back to discover. (No peaking)!

~Little Jackalope~

Repairs and "No Repair"

Well, the digital store is back up and running good once again. Sorry for the inconvenience! It was not a virus, or anything that was error from our side. If you have an account with us, all of your information is still safe and secure, so no worries. (Read the previous post below near the bottom to learn more.)

I noticed this sticky note posted on the light fixture above the next cubicle. I forget what the story was behind this being here...but I thought it looked funny enough to share. It says "No Repair".

Twitter Quote contest is up! Head over to participate for a chance to win a digital strategy guide for The Captive Curse!

Heading to another top-secret meeting, yay!
~Little Jackalope~

First Day of Summer!

If yesterday was a sleepy, quiet day, then today is a busy and bustling day! With the first day of summer here in the Pacific Northwest came a glorious sunny, hot day. It sure feels very lively here at the office. I nearly bumped into a few people walking around a corner. A few other excitements include:

1. We had a recycle truck visit us and take away dead computers (may they rest in peace). We could call this a late spring cleaning.
2. Our digital store is down, we are working to get this fixed
3. I ran out of tea. :(
4. New Father's Day post on the Dare to Play blog. Gotta love dads!
5. Our ad for The Captive Curse appeared in Strand magazine! Check it out:
The days are counting down to store release for The Captive Curse! Only seven more days and you can walk up to a shelf and place your hands on this new game. (A few of us in the office are planning a field trip to see this on display). Have you ordered the game early, or are you waiting to raid the store shelves?

~Little Jackalope~
Further note on #2 from above list:
"Network Solutions, our domain registration vendor, has indicated to us that they are dealing with a major DoS attack, crippling their system, & anyone who has a domain name registered with them. The result is intermittent access to servers or domains, or in this case, access to the Her Interactive digital store. We are working to get the situation rectified as soon as possible. We apologize for any inconvenience."

Game Play and Paper Planes

The weekend was too short this time; I didn't get to finish playing another round of The Captive Curse, but at least I started. I do prefer to take my time with games and movies, though. If I play or watch something in two to three increments (or more), I have that time in between to think about what had just happened. The idea and story is still fresh in my mind, and upon returning to where I left off, I am ready to view the next piece with all of my current thoughts established. This way I feel as though I get more out of the experience.

How do you play story-based games? Do you rush through in one or two sittings, fixed on "what's going to happen next"? Or do you play in sessions, taking your time to contemplate clues and the character's means and motives?

To disrupt my captive thoughts, I found this paper plane in my bin today. I have a rough idea who put it there, and I'm thinking of coloring on it and then passing it on.
Congrats to those who solved the weekend puzzle! This one was a little tedious and perhaps a bit tricky. The letters are directions (D=Down, L=Left, U=Up, R=Right. and D2 for example is Down twice)

Here's how it would look:

While following the lines, be sure to [note each letter or character that is fully boxed in].

The finished web address should look like this:[http://www.herinteractive.com/games/cap/CAP_screensaver.zip]

Type this in, and you will get this. Hooray! This is also offered on our home page today as the free Monday Download.

~Little Jackalope~

Weekend Puzzle #108 + Download CAP now!

Hooray for Friday!
Great news! Those who pre-ordered The Captive Curse digital download can begin downloading TODAY!! Whoo-hoo!! No more waiting until the 28th, because it is ready for you now. Ready, set, go detectives. ;) Read this note just posted:

"To the Best Fans in the World:

Megan and I read all of your feedback and we really appreciate the input. Recently we heard from a customer who pre-ordered the digital download of The Captive Curse. This customer wanted to know why they had to wait till June 28th to download and play the digital version of the game when other customers (those who ordered the physical box version) were able to play as soon as their shipment arrived.

Megan and I realized that this customer was right; they shouldn't have to wait! So as of today, we are making the digital download immediately available for all those customers who pre-ordered the game in this format. Simply follow the link provided in your order confirmation email or go directly to our digital store (http://digitalstore.herinteractive.com/) and start downloading and playing The Captive Curse, ten days earlier than originally promised.

There is nothing more important to all of us at Her Interactive than delivering a fantastic experience to every customer, so please keep sending us your feedback. We’re listening.

Thank you and enjoy the game.

Stuart & Megan"

Here's your weekend puzzle! Although it is not a contest this time, there is a little reward that won't be available until Monday for regular folks. So if you solve this early and type in the web address, you will get the treat early. :)

~Click here for a larger image~

~Click here for a larger image~
Enjoy your weekend! (I'll be playing The Captive Curse, you should join me ;)
~Little Jackalope~

A Blink of a Day

Today is going by so fast, it will soon be gone in the blink of an eye! Since Thursday is "meeting" day for many of us, there hasn't been much time to work on some big projects at our desks, which is fine with me, since this variety is what makes a day more interesting. To include another interesting addition, there have been some electrical blow-outs in our area, and our computers and lights blinked off for a second! Unfortunately an artist lost his day's worth of work because his computer completely turned off without saving anything. :( At least we quickly regained power.

I've gotta get going. I'm off to another meeting! See here: this is one of our meeting rooms, I took a picture of this while intelligent chatter was going on inside.
Oh hey! The regular version of The Captive Curse is now available, but only through us at the moment. Shipping began this week, so many lucky fans will be getting their copy early! The game will be in stores and ready for digital download on the 28th. Whoo-hoo!

~Little Jackalope~

Pre-orders and Hidden Computers

Boy, oh boy! Today's the last day to pre-order the special edition version of The Captive Curse (only the digital version is still available, the physical box has sold out). For those who ordered already, the games will be shipping this week, but the digital downloads will become available on the 28th. So who's ready to play a new Nancy Drew game? :D We are super excited to hear your thoughts about this one!

I've been doing some exploring on other people's computers (guilty snoop) looking for a bunch of files to use. I also went walking around and noticed that several computers that were usually on unused desks were no longer there! This was a mini-mystery that was solved in a matter of moments: our tech guy moved them all into one cubicle. My first creative thought was that the computers had mysteriously crept over there on their own to hide and avoid having to work (our computers work just as hard as we do) but of course there was a logical explanation = cleaning and organizing. A group of computers in one place is easier to wrangle up than when they are scattered around the office like bunch of Easter Eggs hiding in a game. Hm, having actual Easter Eggs in the office would be kind of fun...

Keep it real!
~Little Jackalope~

It's Locked!

Surely anyone who has played a Nancy Drew game has heard the phrase "It's locked!" spoken by Nancy, particularly when there is a door, drawer, cabinet, or box is, of course locked. Since there is always something "locked" for Nancy to break in, use a key, or solve a puzzle to unlock, there is and will be the opportunity to move the cursor over, click on the object and receive that popular phrase.

Sometimes I click several times on a locked door just to hear those words. I often imagine Nancy getting frustrated over my game play, inside her mind she says "It's locked." In a calling voice: "It's loo-oocked!" In a frustrating voice: "It's LOCKED!" and finally "It's locked, ok! Continue with finding the key already, you are getting on my nerves." Of course, Nancy wouldn't say that...but wouldn't it make an awesome outtake? (Hopefully someone in the office will consider putting this into a future game...)

This was placed on my desk yesterday. I was thrilled to receive it! This was an enclosed envelope with "It's Locked!" hand-written on the front and when I opened it, inside I found a key card and gold key! These keys open up locked secrets, activity, and other mysterious unknowns about the games.
Stop by the Dare to Play Blog for more on the The Captive Curse legend!
Twitter quote contest tomorrow! Be sure to check your Twitter messages on Thursdays to see if you are a winner.
~Little Jackalope~

Puzzle Contest Winner!

Congratulations to Laura from Colorado for winning the Weekend Puzzle Contest! Laura wins the Trail of the Twister game and strategy guide! Whoo-hoo!

Kudos to all of those detectives who worked hard on finding all of those clues hidden around the website! That was a bit hard, so great work everyone. :)

Here's the solve:

First word of the title of the first Dossier game. [Lights]
First letter of the first key feature of the Wii game. [U from "Use"]
Fourth country listed under “Buy International” on the “Shops” page. [Russia]
Fifth letter of Warnings at Waverly Academy mini-game title in yellow. [K from "Snack"]
Second-to-last letter in Debbie Kircum’s profile. [I from "is"]
Name of the first character in the August 2009: Nancy Drew Dossier newsletter. [Nick]
The game fifth down on the right-side of the screen on “Games” page. [Ghost Dogs of Moon Lake]
Name of the creek in game #16. [Icicle]
Third link down to choose from when you type in “Install” into the Help page search bar. [Norton Antivirus]
The wallpaper reward from playing the DS mini-game features is a picture of what? [Train]
Title of the Dare to Play blog entry dated March 15th 2011. [Hands on the Ranch]
What character is pictured on the features list of The Haunted Carousel page? [Elliot]
Besides PC, Curse of Blackmoor Manor has been made onto what other platform? [DVD]
The third wallpaper of SHA has a “www.herinteractive.com” featured on what item? [Arrowhead]
The top left tab/link under “Community” page. [Register your game]
Last name of HI’s CFO. [Klee]

Now take [the first letter] of each answer and it will spell out [Lurking in the dark] which is the phrase (or sentence) you were to send in. Ta-da! Finished.

How did you like this contest compared to others?
~Little Jackalope~

Weekend Puzzle #107 = Contest!!

Happy Friday everyone! This weekend puzzle is another contest!! Please read carefully:

1. Solve the weekend puzzle below.
2. When you think you have the right answer (you can just type it, no need to send a picture of the puzzle), email it to solved@herinteractive.com with the subject line "Weekend Puzzle" and include your name, phone number and mailing address in the email.
3. The prize? Trail of the Twister game and strategy guide bundle! 4. The time? Contest begins now and ends at 10am PST on Monday, June 13th.
5. One winner will be randomly drawn from all of the correct entries by 5pm, Monday, June 13th. (We want to be fair and give everyone a chance.) :)

•Each contestant may only enter once.
•Entries must be received before 10am PST Monday, June 13th.
•This contest is open to everyone.
•Entries will only be accepted by email
Be sure to include your contact information with your submission as winner will be contacted upon completion of the contest. Good luck to everyone!

Here's the puzzle! Good luck sleuths! (Hint: See our website. Also: The answer is one sentence long.)

1. First word of the title of the first Dossier game.
2. First letter of the first key feature of the Wii game.
3. Fourth country listed under “Buy International” on the “Shops” page.
4. Fifth letter of Warnings at Waverly Academy mini-game title in yellow.
5. Second-to-last letter in Debbie Kircum’s profile.
6. Name of the first character in the August 2009: Nancy Drew Dossier newsletter.
7. The game fifth down on the right-side of the screen on “Games” page.
8. Name of the creek in game #16.
9. Third link down to choose from when you type in “Install” into the Help page search bar.
10. The wallpaper reward from playing the DS mini-game features is a picture of what?
11. Title of the Dare to Play blog entry dated March 15th 2011.
12. What character is pictured on the features list of The Haunted Carousel page?
13. Besides PC, Curse of Blackmoor Manor has been made onto what other platform?
14. The third wallpaper of SHA has a “www.herinteractive.com” featured on what item?
15. The top left tab/link under “Community” page.
16. Last name of HI’s CFO.

~Little Jackalope~

"The Office Buzz" + Treats

"The Office Buzz" sounds like a cool title for this blog if it didn't have the current one. Of course, that would mean we would only talk about the latest office tidbits that happen every day, and a lot less "sleuthy" stuff. Having the "Amateur Sleuth" title gives more freedom to talk about everything, such as Nancy Drew, detective insights and tricks, the ever-famous weekend puzzle (of which tomorrow's is another contest, so come visit then to take part in a chance to win a prize) and lastly we talk about game production and the office buzz (and if you are in this office reading this post, just know that there are still fudge bars in the middle freezer waiting to be eaten). ^.~ Every once in a while it's fun to have treats. Megan brought in chocolates for us today:Don't worry though, we get plenty of exercise to work off these treats. This reminds me of how many treats Nancy has the opportunity to eat. The fun realistic part is that she can sometimes get sick, such as in Legend of the Crystal Skull when you can have her eat several Koko Kringle bars. Do you have a favorite food to give Nancy?

Hopping back to work...and office snooping.
~Little Jackalope~

Characters, doodles, and an interesting day.

Oh, it's been an interesting day today. Interesting phone calls, re-scheduled meetings, Twitter contest is today, reading plenty of message board posts, preparing announcements, art re-arranging, and preparing for the weekend all have been the short part of my activities and to-do list today.

The most exciting part is that the Character Profiles just went live on The Captive Curse page! Yay! Finally you may learn (just a little bit) of information about the individuals who reside at Castle Finster. What are your early thoughts about these suspicious folk? Do you have any idea who the culprit would be? ;)

After reading my last post, I decided to share a few of my on-going doodles on my notebook cover (this is my current tasklist notebook that holds many secrets and of course, daily list of tasks which I check off like Nancy does. I sometimes say out loud one of the following remarks: "That's done!" or "That's finished." or "Check!" or "Can't check that off, yet.") Anybody else Nancy-nerdy like me? >.<

~Little Jackalope~

Art Styles and Box Designs

Want to hear a little bit of the behind-the-scenes action concerning The Captive Curse art and other box designs? Head over to the Dare to Play Blog to read an interview we had with Mark Tolleshaug, the designer of the Nancy Drew games' box art!

Over the weekend I watched an animated movie of which artwork really inspired me. I then got to thinking about the different art styles that are in the Nancy Drew games. There are many fun different artists in-game and also the artists in the office who brought those characters' work to screen. Some artists in-game you'd recognize would be Sonny Joon, Poppy Dada, Heather McKay, Minette, Brady Armstrong, and Jane Penvellyn to name a few.

Take a look here! I found this sketch from Danger by Design:

~Haute couture!~

Did you know that there have been a few different artists who created Sonny Joon's comical doodles? Sonny rocks, thanks to those talented artists behind the scenes!

I recommend taking a look at one of your favorite scenes, books, doodles, or any picture from inside a game that you enjoy looking at, and give it try! Try copying the style, the same way the colors flow and lines connect, add crazy captions like Sonny does, or design something like Minette or Heather McKay.

I feel like sketching now...
~Little Jackalope~

We have a winner! And mirrors...we have mirrors.

Congrats to Christina from North Carolina for winning the weekend puzzle contest! (Christina wins Shadow at the Water's Edge game and strategy guide.) Stay tuned for future contests on the Amateur Sleuth blog, you might be the next winner ;).

Here's how the puzzle is solved:
Once you have the pieces in the correct order, find the underlined letters that spell out the following: [Down into the spooky dungeons] which, of course, references The Captive Curse.

Today I've been going through some art files and came across this image:

~Yep, a mirror. Bess's compact to be exact.~

It got me thinking about how often mirrors come into play in the games, as well as the books. Mirrors are very helpful tools, not just for looking in to adjust a girl's makeup, but they are also used for spying around corners, under doors, and behind you. They serve to re-direct light such as in Ransom of the Seven Ships in the cave, or the light in the barn of Secret of the Old Clock. Yet with every single mirror we use or see in the games, not once is Nancy's reflection seen. (There is a reason for that, we like to maintain the ideal Nancy image in every one's mind). Mirrors can create visual tricks and optical illusions (have you really taken a look through one, playing with it to see your familiar surroundings backwards, making the environment foreign to your eyes? I find this so cool!)

Yep, mirrors are awesome! Just don't break any, especially if you are superstitious. I'm sure Nancy isn't worried about bad luck, though. There is always something more sinister at work for her to worry about.

Until tomorrow!
Oh wait! There is a new wallpaper made especially for your smart phone! Check it out if you love the cover art for The Captive Curse.

~Little Jackalope~

Weekend Puzzle #106 = Contest!!

Happy Friday everyone! I'm excited to share this weekend puzzle with you because this time it's a contest!! Please read carefully:

1. Solve the weekend puzzle below.
2. When you think you have the right answer (you can just type it, no need to send a picture of the puzzle), email it to solved@herinteractive.com with the subject line "Weekend Puzzle" and include your name, phone number and mailing address in the email.
3. The prize? Shadow at the Water's Edge game and strategy guide bundle!

4. The time? Contest begins now and ends at 10am PST on Monday, June 6th.
5. One winner will be randomly drawn from all of the correct entries by 5pm, Monday, June 6th. (We want to be fair and give everyone a chance.) :)

•Each contestant may only enter once.
•Entries must be received before 10am PST Monday, June 6th.
•This contest is open to everyone.
•Entries will only be accepted by email
Be sure to include your contact information with your submission as winner will be contacted upon completion of the contest. Good luck to everyone!

Here's the puzzle! Good luck sleuths!

~Click for a larger view~

~Little Jackalope~

CRE + Puzzle Thoughts

I've been spending some time with The Creature of Kapu Cave, creating icons and thumbs and collecting screenshots and such. I love it. I'm thinking of going back to playing that game, if only to earn lots of Big Island Bucks and purchase all of the fun souvenirs.

There is some game testing going on in the other room, and it reminds me of my own little creations that needed testing today. Here's a sneak peak at what I've been working on:
Scanning puzzle pieces for tomorrow's BIG weekend puzzle!

Only this time, the weekend puzzle is extra special because it is a contest. Whoo-hoo! The prize will be pretty awesome, so be sure to stop by for more details when it gets posted.

Anxious for when the contest gets posted, but until then,
Ta-ta for now!
~Little Jackalope~

June 1st: The day it all begins...

There is sure a lot going on today! Let me see if I can remember it all:
1. The Captive Curse pre-orders start today! Whoo-hoo! Remember, you only have until the 15th of June to get the special edition from us.

2. The official (and I mean the complete, non-teasing, suspenseful, more informative version) trailer for The Captive Curse is now live! It's on our product page and also on our Youtube Channel. After viewing it, what are your thoughts about the game now?

3. Twitter Quote contest is today! If you have a Twitter account, head over to participate for a chance to win a copy of The Captive Curse when it comes out. This is such a cool prize!

4. Our monthly game special for June is Secret of the Scarlet Hand, on sale for 25% off.

Hmm, what am I missing? Oh yes! This weekend puzzle will be a very rewarding puzzle, perhaps a little competitive...we'll see. ;)

Take a look, here! This is the bilingual cover art that will be going to Canada. Pretty neat, huh? You can be read in English and French:
Ta-ta for now!
~Little Jackalope~