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Nancy
Drew: Secrets Can Kill
Published By: Her
Interactive
Reviewed
by Circe
9/14/99
Article
Discussion Forum
First
Impressions:
OK,
admit it. Who of all of you used to religiously read Nancy
Drew... Come on, speak up! Needless to say, when I first
heard that HerInteractive was producing a game based on
Nancy Drew for girls over 10 years old, I was intrigued.
I recalled all of the complaints about "girl games"
that those fabulous girls from our Girls
on Track conference brought up. They were annoyed at
games they portrayed them as shallow (reading your best
friend's diary), or that portrayed their characters as weaker
than the male characters. HerInteractive's brochure says
that their first title, McKenzie & Co., was the first
computer game ever designed specifically for girls. It further
goes on to state that analysts now predict that this segment
of the computer entertainment market will experience the
most dramatic growth of any in the coming years,
expanding to more than $400 million in sales by the year
2000.
Graphics:
 Very
impressive. Crisp, Clear, well-rendered. The character animations
of the people your character Nancy Drew interrogates reminds
me of the old cartoon style animes. The masterful scene
drawings were quite surprising as well.
Sound:
I
liked her voice. Like an American Julie Andrews.
The
Mood music as well was quite good, especially in the diner
when you get to choose songs from an old-fashioned jukebox.
Gameplay:
You
interact with a complex cast of characters who help them
find clues to solve the mystery and identifying a murderer.
The game can be played at three levels of difficulty including
junior detective, senior detective and master detective.
Putting together pieces of information from conversations,
solving interactive puzzles, and deciphering hidden messages
are
all key to finding the murderer. The navigation through
the site was quite intuitive. A Blue magnifying class signals
scrolling movement whereas a red one signals action. The
one problem that I found on the game was the Load and Save
menu. The controlled did not work so well because they frequently
got stuck and the interface was confusing. But truly, that
was the only part of the game that I thought was hindering.
Enjoyment:
Judging
from the testimonials
given on the HerInteractive website, I think I am correct
in saying that many kids will love this game.
Multiplayer:
Not
Applicable. This is a single player game.
Overall
Impression:
All
in all, this was a fun, captivating game that I think both
boys and girls will like.
Marketing
Efforts Towards Women:
The
character Nancy Drew is a smart, adventurous, and savvy
young girl whom I believe young girls can especially relate
to. HerInteractive is obviously trying to break the mold
of girls' games today. Just look at their logo : "For
Girls Who aren't Afraid of a Mouse". Not bad. I
for one, will be watching this company very closely.
Cheats,
Hints, and URLs:
http://www.herinteractive.com
Nancy
Drew Books:
Nancy
Drew Starter Set : Secret of the Old Clock/Hidden Staircase/Bungalow
Mystery/Mystery at Lilac Inn/Secret Shadow Ranch/and Secret
Red Gate) -- Carolyn Keene; Hardcover
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