Late Night for Tomorrow Surprises

Wow! Where did the day go? A lot of things happened today. Let me briefly share it with you: at first I began to work on the official trailer for The Shattered Medallion, getting a few transitions perfected. But then we were given the "green light" to start working on the official product page. WOOT!

Once we started working on that page, an unexpected bug over on the Message Boards occurred. (Those bugs are annoying...so we got out our bug expert and he started cleaning up those pesky bugs.) Later today, the board was fixed.

I wandered through the forums and noticed every one's requests for new avatars. So I made a few from The Silent Spy and put them up. I'm still working on some more...

The most important random message I have for you: visit our web site tomorrow sometime after lunch. Very interesting things to come!

We have a couple of birthdays!

~Little Jackalope~

New Message Boards!

We have updated our message boards! It has been years (like...7 or 8 years) since they have been really updated, and it needed it. Especially in the back end, which none of you see, and it is mostly for technical specifications. That being said, there are some changes that do affect you all in the front end.

We posted a thread in message boards here about the details of the changes. If we missed anything, we will add the info to that post, so check back later if you are confused about something. Also, you can always ask question in the Message Board Questions forum, where other members can help answer your questions.

On to the fun! We posted this Nancy Drew moment today. For those of you played Treasure in the Royal Tower, you may have encountered a dead end where Nancy says "Hello there dead-end! My name's Nancy Drew", which I found hilarious.

Twitter Quote contest is today! Head over for a chance to win a digital guide!

~Little Jackalope~

News & Medallions

There is a lot going on this week at Her Interactive! We just finished the Caption Contest on Facebook (congrats to our winner, Avery!), and we are getting the product page ready for The Shattered Medallion. There is a lot to do!

Also, just a head's up: we will be working on the Message Boards between Wednesday, March 26th and Tuesday, April 1st. It will be back up on April 2nd. (It needed to get pushed back a day). So don't try to log in or post during this time...because it might not work for you.

Work has been slow on the trailer because we have been busy, and as soon as I'm finished with this blog post I will be getting right back to it!

Here's something else to keep in mind: this Friday through Sunday I will begin the Nancy Drew marathon by playing Treasure in the Royal Tower. If you do not have this game, you can order it in our store here. If you do have it, now is the time to install it and get it ready with your notebook and pencil (unless you have the game memorized and don't even need to take notes).

If you are a fan of TRT, I'd like to point out one of my favortist things in our Merchandise Store: The medallion images featured on the round ceramic ornaments! (I also added the purple one to represent Marie's favorite color. This way, you can purchase two ornaments and have a color on each side, getting all four for your collection.)

~Little Jackalope~

Sonny Appearances in March

What did you think of the cover art we released last Friday? Yes we have been teasing Sonny Joon for a while now, and to clarify, yes it is Sonny on the cover art. I personally am really excited because Sonny, to me, turned out better than I imagined.

Our style of the cover art and box layout design is our signature look nowadays: small details hidden around the illustration show minor (or "secondary") important features of the game that surround the center-most important element. There is a picture of George in the top left corner, hanging onto a bridge. To the right is an underwater submerge-able with a character inside, and many competitors are shown at the base. Have you noticed the circle of logos on the ground?

Sonny Joon is centered on the illustration over the shattered medallion pieces because he is the most important part, along with of course, that medallion.

So what do you suppose Sonny is up to in this next game? Why have we made him the center of the art? What is he thinking? More info will come in the near future, and more questions may arise later when the trailer is released.

For now, save this cover art onto your desktop and remember when pre-orders begin! Also, we have made Sonny Joon's concept illustration available in the merchandise store. Who wants a Sonny t-shirt? I DO!!! I will soon begin working on the cover art design for the store, so keep coming back to learn when that becomes available. ;)

A few minor announcements for you:
1. Nancy Drew madness is becoming even more exciting! SHA barely beat our SAW today on Facebook. (Please do not enter multiple times via comments, this is cheating and is unfair to the competition. If we see that you are breaking this rule, we will further exclude your votes. Today I subtracted a few votes whose members posted several times. Please follow the rules. I'd very much appreciate it, thanks!) 

2. The message boards will be down between this Wednesday, March 26th to Monday, March 31st for maintenance. We appreciate your patience while we work on the forums!

Lastly, we have a birthday to celebrate!

 
~Little Jackalope~

Weekend Puzzle #224

First things first: just giving you all a head's up about our message boards this weekend. Some minor maintenance will be happening on the boards for a bit, so the forums will be temporarily down. You won't see any changes at your end after the work is done, so no worries!

How's the start of your new year? Did you set any goals for yourself in 2014? I sure did. I like "goals" better than "resolutions". It feels less binding and more adventurous of a word. Anyways, I'd really want to add more images to the merchandise store! And make more videos for YouTube! And do...some...Nancy Drew...stuff...? We shall see! I know of many exciting things to look forward to, and here is a clue to one of them:

You sleuths are all pros by know, so solving this one should be a piece of cake! ;)

We have a few birthdays!

~Little Jackalope~

Nancy Drew: The Silent Spy

Today is the big day!! Nancy Drew's 29th mystery is now officially released! You can find The Silent Spy in all major retail stores, and of course, our web site. However, our web site is the only place you will receive a free digital strategy guide when you order the game.

So who's going to the store today to bring home a Scotland adventure? I've personally decided that SPY is now in my top 5 favorites (now I need to re-order my favorites lists). This is because I believe SPY has an overall excellent balance of all the elements I love about a Nancy Drew game: great story, characters with secrets, a secret room or hidden compartment in the game, new location/environment access half-way through the game play, great puzzle variation and difficulty, sleuthing and snooping in places and people's stuff.

How do you rate games? Be sure to post your review of the game to our Message Board! We'd love to hear your thoughts!

Tomorrow I have a lot of fan art and fan love to share with you, so stay tuned!

Birthday!

~Little Jackalope~

Be Careful Who You Trust!

Sounds like several of you have already received and played The Silent Spy! If you'd like to share your thoughts (we will be sure to read them) post them to the message boards! Also, if you are still in the middle of solving the mystery, don't forget about the strategy guide that was included in your order (you download it as a pdf).

Today we posted this image:

So who did you trust? Or if you haven't played the game, yet, who do you think you can trust? Characters specifically each have secrets hidden from you, and it's up to you to decide if they are trustworthy, if they are the good guys or the bad guys.

Without spoiling it for others, did you guess the culprit early? Were you surprised at any of the characters' secrets?

~Little Jackalope~

Download The Silent Spy!

Today's the day! If you pre-ordered the digital Bonus Edition of The Silent Spy, you may have received your email allowing you to download already. If you pre-ordered the physical version, just know that all orders have been processed, and the game should be on its way to your home right now!

Once you finish playing the game, share with us your thoughts and opinions by posting to the Message Boards! (If the strategy guide does not help, then the Message Boards are a great place to seek assistance.)

Now get back to your spy work! (~.^)

~Little Jackalope~

Costume Inspirations and Sold Out BONUS EDITIONS!

Aaaaaaand here's the big news for today:

Yep. We have now sold out of the BONUS EDITION physical copies for The Silent Spy.

Also, many of you have received emails about your pre-order status. If you are confused what this means, please read this note from our Administrator on the Message Boards.

Check these out! We had a little fun and put together some outfits inspired by Charlotte in Nancy Drew Ghost of Thornton Hall. Great sample pieces to put together a Halloween costume!

For those fashion-savvy social-sharing fans out there, we just started a Polyvore account! In case you wanted to check out our sets. ;)

Twitter Quote Contest is today!
~Little Jackalope~

Nancy and SPY

I'm excited to hear that everyone is loving the newly-released cover art for The Silent Spy! I'm also aware that many of you are hesitant with how we are handling the story about Nancy's mom. This is understandable, since it's on a more personal level to all of us.

I will leave it up to you to decide if you think we handled Nancy's world correctly. After all, you know our games as well as we do! And be sure to give the game a try when it becomes available so that you may judge for yourself and post your review to our Message Boards. :)

For now, I can offer my behind-the-scenes, long-time-Nancy-Drew-Super-Fan opinion, which may differ from yours once you have played the game, which is ok.

My early review: This is a REALLY fun game, like Warnings at Waverly Academy or Shadow at the Water's Edge or Curse of Blackmoor Manor, even if it has a different "flavor" than those mysteries. The story is outstanding, and yes, personal. The story is beautifully written and presented, honoring the Nancy Drew canon, and respecting the Nancy Drew universe. There are parts that will make you cry, as it did for me, and there are parts where you may feel like you are in danger (YES! Cannot have a game without danger!). Ultimately, it's a grand adventure well worth playing. And I've played it 6 times already.

Tomorrow I may talk about the Nancy Drew universe or "canon". Until then, may I offer you a challenge? Start reading as many different Nancy Drew books (in different printing, old and new) as you can, do a little research and comment back on this blog post with what you find about Nancy's mom. you may be surprised at what you will (or will not) find...!

On another note, take a look at what's on my computer right now: Cover art for the merchandise store!

This art isn't complete, yet, but it will be soon enough!

~Little Jackalope~

Day Two of GTH Pre-Orders

Hooray! It's day two of pre-orders for Ghost of Thornton Hall! There was too much excitement yesterday in the office to express everything that happened, so today I'll share this with you: yesterday we received our print proofs for the boxed game art! Check it out! We posted it on the wall for the entire office to see:

And I also got a copy of the single DVD sleeve for display on my own wall:

How cool is that? So excited!
I also had to take a few moments to read every one's thoughts on the Message Board, too. Sounds like a lot of intrigued sleuths out there!
~Little Jackalope~

Download The Deadly Device!

I suppose I have been talking about The Deadly Device a lot, huh? Well, why not? I'm just so excited for everyone to play it! And today, everyone who pre-ordered the digital download will get to download today! Whoo-hoo! The wait is over! Ok, enough exclamation marks...too much excitement....But it's finally a "who-done-it" mystery! Ok, hopefully you are just as excited as I am and have pre-ordered. If not, you still can pre-order by the 22nd of October to get your Bonus Edition.

 

For those of you who have not yet received it, a small warning: If you linger on the internet for a while, you are bound to notice that many fans have already played (and *gasp* solved it). They will be talking about it, giving their reviews, saying what they think was cool, or needed improvement etc...and occasionally a spoiler might slip out. It is perfectly fine to discuss the game, in fact, when you finish, give us your review on our Message Boards here!

One small request from me personally: if you finished the game, please refrain from spoiling the culprit's name for the sake of others. Be sure to put answers in spoiler code on the Message Boards. Thanks! :D

Even though I've played the game 3 times, I think I will go home now and play...just once more. XD

Also,

Hope you have a good one!
~Little Jackalope~

Videos, Snooping, and Interviews, Oh My!

We have several announcements today, and if you subscribed to our Newsletter, you might have already learned about all that is going on. (To view our latest newsletter, Click Here). I'm just going to catch you all up to speed on everything below:

1. Tomorrow (Friday July 27) is the last day to submit your Video Testimonial! For more information and to view the amazing prizes, check out our Video Testimonial Contest page. I have watched almost all of them, and I absolutely love hearing what you all have to say! Some of you even got creative with how you presented yourselves. So you know, you are allowed to play Nancy Drew music during in your video if you would like. :) I can tell that our office is going to have a tough time picking a winner, if I had the final say, I'd pick everyone! XD

2. We have another Facebook Caption Contest going on this week, starting today! (This contest is Facebook exclusive). What is Phoenix thinking or saying in the picture we posted? Post your caption to the photo on our page for a chance to win an Ultimate Nancy Drew Journal (which we also have on sale in our merchandise store for $9.99 right now). Contest ends Monday night!

3. We interviewed our fantastic Lead 2D Artist, Kris! What kind of stories do you think she could tell? Find out what she has to say and learn what projects she has worked on that you have seen in the games in her interview on the Dare to Play Blog!

4. We also interviewed one of our amazing moderators on the message board! Check out what ~Jinkies Nancy!~ has to say here!

5. On Tuesday, if you haven't already seen it, Phoenix uploaded a video to our YouTube Channel of her snooping through the office to find important information! What will she find? Will she get caught? Oh the suspense!! Watch it now!

Whew! I don't know about you, but that's a lot to announce!

Weekend puzzle tomorrow! And I've learned something interesting about the egg culprit....will mention it tomorrow. (o.O)
~Little Jackalope~

The Message Board

First things first: Happy 12th Birthday Joshua!! Hope you have a great one! (This is a lightning bolt, Tesla-themed cupcake).

 I haven't really spoken much about the message board lately, and I figured now is a grand time to do so!

For our third summer week in a row, we have posted a new interview with Clueless in SA, one of our wonderful moderators. For those who don't know what moderator is, here is a very brief, incomplete description:

The Moderators are all volunteers who patrol the boards and help to keep them clean and safe, making sure the rules are followed. The rules may be tough...(I know, I once got a notice that I had spammed XD), but they help to keep everything in Nancy Drew appropriateness...if that's even a word. :P Well, it is now...hehe.

The moderators aren't mean. They are in fact really nice, kind of like your favorite teacher or favorite uncle. If they weren't around, feelings might be hurt, you wouldn't be able to ask for game hints and get appropriate answers, and you might have to spend hours sifting through post after post of chatter that doesn't exactly offer the help you were looking for.

It's a very tough and important job, but to maintain the quality we strive for in all areas of our games, we must have boundaries to continue going forward with excellence, and to allow everyone to have a lot of fun. You don't hear Nancy swearing awful words or calling people names. It's true that she talks a lot though...especially to herself, but that's where her journal comes in handy, I suppose. Haha.

On to the fun stuff! If you are not a member of the message board, I recommend you browse them for a bit. Here are some great places for you to check out if you are new:

Notes From Her Interactive:
Where the company posts news updates and important information for you.

Blogs and Tweets:
Where you go to discuss the Amateur Sleuth Blog and Dare to Play Blog and Facebook/Twitter posts that we have mentioned. This includes puzzles and contests that were posted in the mentioned places.

Hints and Tips:
For each game, there is a Hints and Tips forum for you to seek out help from fellow players.

Game Reviews:
For each game, there is a Review forum for players who have finished the game and want to tell others about it, often critiquing and scoring it to their preference. Most all of these are spoiler-free, meaning they will tell you about the game without giving away the culprit or any exciting story elements.

I've been a member of the message board for about ten years, and was around before the big Message Board shift that many veterans remember, so I know my way around, and I will still say that besides the strategy guides, the forums are the best places to get game help and hints, and all around the best place to go to discuss Nancy Drew Games! Thanks everyone (moderators especially) for keeping the Message Board a great place to visit and participate in!!

~Little Jackalope~

Little Things + Little Secrets

When I showed up to my cubicle this morning I found this:

 

Bunny-shaped marshmallows from Phoenix! I was so happy... :') As much as I wanted to keep them alive, they couldn't survive me. Yeah, I ate them.

I have a few secrets that I cannot really elaborate on and share with you yet...but here are some hints:
- Future Phoenix video: Some fun in the sun
- Next game cover art
- Next game hidden merchandise
- And a hint to the next game in tomorrow's weekend puzzle

For now, I can only share with you these tidbits:
- We have our second Moderator Interview live on our Message Boards! Please welcome our superstar catsandbooks and check out what she has to say here!
- Also, we have another employee interview with our fantastic Administrative Assistant, CJ! If you have ever called our main number, it's likely Cj that you have talked to. What gadget do you suppose she would invent for Nancy Drew if she could? Check out her interview on the Dare to Play blog here!

Today is the last day to play and finish the Nancy Drew TXT CHALLENGE #3! Get your phones out and prove to us that you really know our game characters. ;) The grand prize is amazing, in my opinion.
~Little Jackalope~

A Weekend of Big Fun!

Ok, so perhaps that title isn't very creative, but it hits my point on the bull's eye! This weekend we have a lot of exciting things going on, it's a wonder that I didn't burst and tell you earlier. But now I can! Let me list them off like a checklist so I don't forget anything...

• First off, 

~Happy Birthday GJ fan!!~

(Hope you have a great one!)

• On the message boards, we are interviewing our fantastic moderators! Beginning with callas, we will interview a moderator each week until the end of summer. We wanted to give our hard workers a little spotlight time for all of the hard work they do, they keep our forums running smooth, clean, safe and enjoyable for everyone. Check out her interview here!

• Are you like me, in that you have several sheets of paper scattered all over with your Nancy Drew game notes? We have a solution for this issue: an official Nancy Drew game journal (the one from the collector's tin set) is now available in our merchandise store! The original price for this item is $14.99, but we are currently offer it at $9.99. Head over and order your own!

• What do you like about Nancy Drew games? We wanted to hear from you, and now's your chance to share with us why you like them in a Video Testimonial Contest! Upload a video (1 minute or less) to YouTube and email us the web link to solved@herinteractive.com with the subject line "Video Testimonial" for a chance to win some prizes! Head over to our web page for more details and complete rules.

• And I'm super excited to present my favorite contest: the Nancy Drew TXT CHALLENGE #3! This time it's trivia! How well do you know our characters and historical figures? Text "Nancy" to 82257 to start playing, the first 200 players to get halfway will get a code for 50% a game. Everyone who gets 60 or more points overall will be entered into the grand prize drawing. Click here for more details!

Last but not least, since today was a busy week for me, our intern, Phoenix, has provided you with a fun weekend puzzle. (Thanks Phoenix!) Enjoy!

23.25.15.4.3.9.11.14.8.1.18.19.4.4.1.3.20.5.8.19.

8.18.1.?.8.3.5.20.5.3.15.19.9.14.14.25.8.3.1.5.

20.5.15.1.20.18.5.8.4.5.5.7.

8.20.5.19.5.7.20.9.4.14.7.!.

Have a great weekend!
~Little Jackalope~

The Snack Cupboard: It's Locked!

*Site Update*: The Message Boards will be down tonight for regular server maintenance between 12:00AM and 3:00AM PST. Nothing about the message boards will be changing, so no worries. The updates are mostly for in our office, you won't notice anything afterwards.

Today is one of those days of the week where a person runs out of fuel and just needs a pick-me-up. In my case, this means cookies. And my desk drawers were lacking cookies. Which is a BIG deal. So I went snooping for a snack in our kitchen and there wasn't much available within reach. No worries! I know where to find more: in the supply closet in the kitchen. One problem: "It's Locked!" Which is probably a good thing knowing me...but then, I did know where to find the key. (Shh, don't tell anyone that I went snooping in some one's desk for this.) Cookies re-stocked! Mission success!

Today we added the latest "Nancy Drew Moment" #1:

Oh yeah...it's totally locked. (I'm guilty of saying this out loud, especially here in the office).

As for my egg mystery, I have nothing to update you with. Further investigations and tricks up my sleeve will be for tomorrow, or Monday. :-/

~Little Jackalope~