Weekend Puzzle #198

The weekend has returned to us! Today I must share some doodles one of artists worked on this week. What do you think?

Nancy Drew

Arglefumph (Michael Gray)

And here's your weekend puzzle, good luck!

It's a birthday weekend!

~Little Jackalope~

Collecting Nancy Drew Moments

Perhaps you own all of the books, maybe you have played all of the games, or suppose you have also seen the TV series from the 70s. Are you a big fan and collector of everything Nancy Drew? Or is your collection just getting started?

Somewhere in your home is a shelf with a few Nancy Drew items, and like any good detective, you keep your eyes sharp and observant for that missing book or that one missing item to add to your collection. Have certain locations in the games intrigued you enough to want to visit the area in real life? Maybe there is a foreign language or a real-life skill that you have become interested in because of the games.

I for one, am a big collector. Not as some die-hard fans already are, but I'm working on my own collection at home. I plan on getting some merchandise from our store that reflects contents found in the games; such as the Jr. Park Ranger key chain from Ghost Dogs of Moon Lake, or the Whale key chain found in Danger on Deception Island.

Another way to simply collect Nancy Drew memories is to create your own scrapbook, the way Nancy has on her own desk. Since I've visited the castle that inspired Wickford's in Treasure in the Royal Tower, maybe I will decorate a page with those photos I took in the theme of that game: purple, add Marie Antoinette, perhaps  a brochure of the castle's restaurant menu...

Check out Vlad's scrapbook pages he created about Warnings at Waverly Academy! (Click on the images to see a larger view).

 

 

 

 

Birthday today!

~Little Jackalope~

Never Too Old for Nancy Drew

This past year I have made an interesting observation. Some people who comment, post, email, or respond to us admit they are fans of Nancy Drew games, and are yet a little ashamed or embarrassed to announce that they enjoy playing them. Some fans are male, some fans are in their 30s or even older.

Maybe I could help ease this embarrassment. There is nothing to be ashamed of. :) Speaking both from my Nancy-Drew-fan-mind as well as from my knowledge of the Her Interactive company, here are three things that can make you proud to play these mystery games:

1. Nancy Drew: This fictitious character was created in 1930, so we may have fans over 80 years old who read the original books, or appreciate the values of this old-time character. Nancy was--and still is--a strong female character who is smart and brave and adventurous. Anyone can be proud of taking on her role in these modern-day games!

2. Rated E for Everyone/Ages 10 and Up: While a person can be quick to judge the game rating by what age the game is appropriate for, it takes an observant reader to understand why these games are rated E or E10.  These low ratings simply mean that the games are "clean" and "appropriate" for the general audience. It is a value we have to create games with integrity. We also say "ages 10 and up" because the puzzles may be difficult for a young child to play on their own without help, or that it may be a bit hard to understand the story. The games are made for everyone to enjoy! For more information about ESRB game ratings (particularly the rating for Ghost of Thornton Hall), read this blog post here.

3. Her Interactive: Back in the day when it was nearly unheard of for girls to be playing video games (waaay back in 1997) this company was formed to create games targeted to girls. While we continue to provide a great game for the female audience (whom today are playing a lot more video games -- yay!!), the games are just as fun and appropriate for guys to enjoy. Guys, we aren't leaving you out!

 ---

The Nancy Drew games are not only meant for pre-teens, nor are they meant only for girls. The games are designed to be fun, challenging, interesting, rich in story, puzzles, and fun characters. If you are playing a Nancy Drew game from Her Interactive, then that game we made was meant for you!

Our fans are the best fans ever! They are smart, witty, adventurous and determined to crack any case. The number one reason why we keep making these great games is because you enjoy them. So thank you for helping us to continue sending Nancy Drew to far-off places, for letting her snoop in nooks and crannies; solving mysteries and revealing the truth behind all these culprits!

Are you proud to be a Super Sleuth? Tell your friends that you are the #1 detective in history because you've solved mysteries as Nancy Drew!

~Little Jackalope~

Who is Nancy Drew?

According to me, everyone who plays a Nancy Drew game can claim to be "Nancy Drew", since they take on her character role. Therefore, anybody can suddenly burst into this song that we posted a while back:

Due to several requests, we are posting the lyrics and chords! Perhaps this is your opportunity to perform for a YouTube video, yes? We'd love to see how many "Nancy Drew"s will sing this song!

Guitar Chords:
Capoed on 5: Am, E, F, G
With no capo: Em, B, C, D

"I'm Nancy Drew" song lyrics:

Verse 1
In my line of work it’s fun and games
when new mysteries come my way.
When friends need help, they call me in
So I can track down their dark villain.
At times the case usually seeks me out,
Trouble comes, what’s that about?
These things have logical explanations…
Let’s find them out cause I want my vacation! 

Chorus
Add this to my resume,
I’m Nancy Drew, I hope you’ve heard of me.
I solve the case every time;
I find the treasure and stop all crime.
Don’t try to hide, ‘cause it won’t work.
I’m comin’ for ya, you dirty crook! 

Verse 2
I’ve rescued friends, learned Morse code,
Frozen to death, and blew up a boat!
I’ve danced on stage, and climbed up cliffs,
Worn a disguise, and caught some fish.
When the truth gets close, the culprits get closer,
And danger lurks around every corner.
Snooping is my specialty,
Searching through stuff that doesn’t belong to me. 

Chorus
Add this to my resume,
I’m Nancy Drew, I hope you’ve heard of me. (What?!)
I solve the case every time;
I find the treasure and stop all crime.
Don’t try to hide, ‘cause it won’t work.
I’m comin’ for ya, you dirty crook! 

Verse 3
I’ve been shocked, stung, attacked and eaten,
Suffocated, drowned, poisoned, bitten,
Hit over the head a countless number of times,
But don’t worry, I always seem to be fine...
I’ve jet packed across the old country,
Can understand French, German, Italian and Cockney,
Snuck into meetings and into locked rooms,
But no matter where I go I can’t catch Sonny Joon! 

Chorus
Add this to my resume,
I’m Nancy Drew, I hope you’ve heard of me. (What?!)
I solve the case every time;
I find the treasure and stop all crime.
Don’t try to hide, ‘cause it won’t work.
I’m comin’ for ya, you dirty crook!

Verse 4
Monsters and villains may try to stop me,
And ghosts and creatures aren’t THAT scary!
Reading my journal for clues and notes,
I’m packing my bags and grabbing my coat.
There may be tricks, troubles, and trials ahead,
But I get help from Bess, George and Ned.
Twenty-seven cases in my past I have solved,
Now I’m off to hunt the Ghost of Thornton Hall.

Chorus
Add this to my resume,
I’m Nancy Drew, I hope you’ve heard of me. (What?!)
I solve the case every time;
I find the treasure and stop all crime.
Don’t try to hide, ‘cause it won’t work.
I’m comin’ for ya, you dirty crook! 

---

Also, we have a birthday shout-out!

~Little Jackalope~

Memorial Weekend

If you have a gap in your Nancy Drew Games' shelf, this weekend would be a great time to order a physical game to add to your collection. We have a sale going on, this weekend only! Get 25% off any physical game using promo code MEM2013 at checkout.

No weekend puzzle today, everyone. :( Instead, I challenge you to find at least one Easter egg in Ghost of Thornton Hall. Although I know how to find out where to look for these, I don't really know how to find them in-game...So I'm going on an egg hunt this weekend! ;)

Also, we've got a birthday to celebrate!

Stay sleuthy!
*Note: We will not be in the office on Monday to observe Memorial Day. See you Tuesday!
~Little Jackalope~

Little Jackalope Interview

Our Lead Tester decided that it was my turn to sit in the "hot seat" and be interviewed. She asked me all sorts of fun questions, so I hope you enjoy this new video as well as get a few clues to what I get to work on here at Her Interactive. Ta-da! XD

Here is the remaining answers to last weekend's puzzle. It looks like a few of you got some correct!

#6 Legend of the Crystal Skull

 #7 The Secret of Shadow Ranch

 #8 Message in a Haunted Mansion

#9 Tomb of the Lost Queen

#10 The Captive Curse

Also, we have a couple of birthdays!

~Little Jackalope~

Hunting for Nancy Drew

Is it just me, or is book hunting for musty old, vintage Nancy Drew books and antiques a fun pastime? Although I own all of the yellow-back 56 original titles, I enjoy hunting for different printings, different covers, as well as any of the later mysteries that remind me of the games. (Like Treasure in the Royal Tower and Mystery in Tornado Alley).

Last weekend I went to a large book warehouse that was getting rid of all their stock. The books appeared to be scattered everywhere until I learned that they were all assigned a SKU number. I went online and researched all the Nancy Drew books I wanted to hunt down, and then went exploring in the three large warehouses for these hidden books.

So many bookshelves, I could easily get lost if I wasn't paying attention to the signs.

This warehouse shown below was dark, and required a flashlight to see all the books on the shelves.

 

I spy some Nancy drew and Hardy Boys books!

Today I promised to reveal more picture answers to last weekend's puzzle. Here you go!
Answers to #1, #2, #3, #4, and #5:

#1 The Captive Curse

#2 Shadow at the Water's Edge

#3 Ghost Dogs of Moon Lake

#4 The Haunting of Castle Malloy

#5 Ghost Dogs of Moon Lake

Tomorrow I will reveal the remaining pictures #6-10. ;)
~Little Jackalope~

Puzzling Pictures

Since I'm having fun reading every one's comments about the last weekend puzzle...I'm going to reveal only 5 of the 15 pictures today. So far I haven't seen anybody get #7 and #9, and only a few of you have correctly identified #1, #2, and #10.

Answers to #11, #12, #13, #14, #15:

#11 and #13 = Warnings at Waverly Academy

 #12 = Legend of the Crystal Skull

  

#14 = Curse of Blackmoor Manor

 #15 = Curse of Blackmoor Manor

Tomorrow I shall reveal the first row.
Hint for #2: [look in an area where you can play a fun game].
~Little Jackalope~

Playing Nancy Drew

We posted another wise saying today on our social media sites:

Isn't it nice when you happen to have a key at just the right moment you approach a locked drawer, compartment or door?

It looks like you super sleuths are hard at work trying to solve last weekend's puzzle. I'm rather surprised that nobody has correctly listed all the correct answers in a single comment or post on the Message Boards.

Need a hint or two? Here's a nudge on a couple: [#2 is not from TOT or WAC.] And second hint: [#10 is not an older game, it's newer...like last from the last 8 or so.] I'll give you another day to work it out and see if you can't identify those tricky ones.

Good luck detectives!

~Little Jackalope~

Observation Skills

First of all, our mask winners have been randomly selected! Find out who won here!

One of the most popular skills that any detective must build up to become a great detective is the skill to observe. Nancy needs to set her eyes on everything possibly relevant to her case in order to not miss a potential clue.

When entering a new environment, take a look at everything in sight. Depending on the amount of time there is to spend in the location, a detective must be quick to observe and mentally note important features of the space. A person may never know when a chandelier rope or manhole needs to be reached!

How observant have you been while solving all the past cases? Try identifying the game these items and decorations can be found in! Good luck, savvy sleuths!

Also, we have a birthday this weekend! Yay!

~Little Jackalope~

Startling Moments!

Today is a good day to start talking about the game play of Ghost of Thornton Hall. One of the true things about the older games (when I didn't know what was going to happen) that made me nervous was every time that I was about to turn a corner, or enter a new environment. Who knew that a shadowy figure would walk across the halls in Message in a Haunted Mansion? Or that a crow would nearly fly into your face in The Haunting of Castle Malloy?

Here in the office, one of the scare styles we like to incorporate to scary games, or thriller games, is the element of surprise. When you least expect it (or totally anticipate it) something will happen suddenly to startle you! Have you had this Nancy Drew moment before?

Did we startle you in Ghost of Thornton Hall? How about in Shadow at the Water's Edge? Does Message in a Haunted Mansion still get to you and make you nervous? If so, we recommend this Nancy Drew-type advice:

If you have played Ghost of Thornton Hall already, are there any other games you are missing from your mystery collection? With school letting out soon and summer being just around the corner, this may be a good time to catch up on some unsolved cases!

Head's up! Tomorrow we announce the 100 mask winners on our site!
~Little Jackalope~

Random Fan Love and Office Activities

To get you up to speed on what we have been up to now that Ghost of Thornton Hall has released. The artists are working on their first round of environments for the next game, ND#29 (you can watch the preview video on our YouTube Channel now). The production team is working on creating the early game builds and looking at some puzzles and logic that will create the game play experience, and sales and marketing has mostly been focused on the GTH game launch.

Today, a few of us walked across the parking lot to get hot dogs at the hot dog cart, and later I got to sit in on a top-secret meeting for ND#29. Woot! Just before I went into that meeting, I received some fan mail that was just too cool not share with you.  LOVE it!!

(Honestly, I half-expected glitter to burst out from this envelope and the contents to be written in crayon and ...but in fact, Cami and April typed up a well-written professional fan letter. Thanks you guys!) XD

Although seriously, I would totally love to see some fan mail written or colored with crayons. And include a box of cookies. Yep. Cookies would be heavenly. Maybe I should go and get some...hopefully they haven't been hidden in the locked closet...

~Little Jackalope~

Ghost of Thornton Hall

Today is the day! Ghost of Thornton Hall has officially released! Check your local store to find it on shelves, or order the game from our site! In my opinion, it's one of the best Nancy Drew games ever, so I highly recommend playing this one. (~.^)

FYI: We also launched the preview video for ND#29 to our YouTube Channel today. If you'd like to see what the next game is, watch it here. (Spoiler!) Don't worry, it will be a while before I start talking about this next game, so you have some time to finish GTH and see the preview for yourself if you wish.

We've got some more birthdays!

~Little Jackalope~

Last Day to Pre-Order!

Ok everyone! If you really wanted a BONUS EDITION of Ghost of Thornton Hall, tonight's your last chance to order it (the digital download version only since the physical version sold out a while ago. However, the STANDARD physical game is available for purchase on our site).

Many fans have already played through the game, and those who are awaiting the STANDARD EDITION's release in stores will only have to wait one more night, because it releases in retail tomorrow!! Whoo-hoo! (We will surely be celebrating this festive occasion in the office.)

Anyways, here's the solution to last weekend's puzzle:
This is a similar puzzle to one in Warnings at Waverly Academy. Start by [reading the words in a spiral (clock-wise) direction, beginning with the very center letter (H).] When you read it correctly, you get this: [Have you found any Easter Eggs?] referring to inside GTH.

Also, we have birthdays to celebrate!

~Little Jackalope~