Community
A Note About The Captive Curse Digital Download
Fri, 2011-06-17 12:49 — HerInteractiveTo 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
The Terror of Castle Finster
Tue, 2011-06-14 14:25 — HerInteractiveThere is a disturbance surrounding Castle Finster, and the inhabitants of the castle community are on edge! What is it that is making everyone nervous? Tales of a legend coming back do not easily convince the skeptical of a returning terror that lurks in the woods, but claw marks, missing livestock and other evidence proves that there is indeed activity.
Could it be the hybrid beast, the wolpertinger, stalking the woods? Perhaps the vampire known as the nachsayer, is watching, waiting to attack from above? What if there’s a buxenwolf, a fearsome werewolf hunting the premises? A poltergeist, the troublemaker of the ghost world, would certainly avoid detection when it wants to. Or maybe some sort of monster whose grotesque face is scary enough to send people running for their lives? Could it be one or several of these, or is there a logical explanation to the mayhem?
Perhaps it is best to not let our imagination get us carried away. Although Nancy gets scared at times, she knows there is always a logical explanation to everything, but depending on the circumstances, how often might she wonder about the other possibilities? Stay tuned for more on the captivating terror of Castle Finster. Check out the character profiles page, or better yet, solve the mystery yourself! Don’t leave this case in the dark, because the sooner it is solved, the sooner the castle inhabitants can regain their nerves! Pre-orders for the digital game end tomorrow, so hurry over before time runs out!
Cover Art Designer Mark Tolleshaug Interview!
Tue, 2011-06-07 11:59 — HerInteractiveWe interviewed our game cover designer Mark Tolleshaug on creating the art for the Nancy Drew games!
Her Interactive -- Tell us a little bit about yourself and how long you’ve worked with Her Interactive?
Mark -- "I am a graphic designer specializing in retail packaging and branding, though I like to call myself simply a "designer", because I love to dabble in all kinds of design, including graphic design, architecture, interior and industrial design. I began working with Her Intertactive in 1999, designing the Message in a Haunted Mansion box. It was the perfect first game to do, I mean who doesn't love haunted mansions! I have very fond memories of working on that one. The game sold very well, so I was asked to help with the next two boxes, and then it just went on from there.
Her Interactive -- How many of the Nancy Drew box designs have you worked on?
Mark -- "We are now working on the 25th game of the adventure series, but I've also designed several specialty boxes and collector's editions, plus the Nancy Drew Dossier series. So probably around 40 total."
Her Interactive -- Was your approach to The Captive Curse different than other packaging design projects?
Mark -- "Yes and no. Because it is part of a series, it was important to have continuity with other titles, so my general approach was the same. But this was the first package where I couldn't show the key subject or hook of the game, in this case the creature. The creature was the coolest, most mysterious aspect of the game, and incredibly scary I might add, and I couldn't show it anywhere on the box. So I had to find ways to create that mystery and fear without directly showing him. In the end, I did sneak him in on the box, hidden in a couple of spots."
Her Interactive --What was the single most important thing that you wanted to convey with this packaging design?
Mark -- "A story. I believe what sets the Nancy Drew packaging apart from other games on the shelf, is that the covers tell a story. My goal with each box is for the consumer to play out a story in their head just by viewing the cover, without even reading or knowing details of the game. It doesn't matter if that story is accurate to the game, initially, but I want them to begin to sense that a real adventure awaits. With The Captive Curse, the story is one of mystery and fear and sense of place: an old village in Germany. I also wanted to convey an underlying feeling of romance, not in the relationship sense, but in the experience and environment. I think old castles, stormy skies and ancient artifacts are romantic."
Her Interactive -- What do you enjoy most about working on the Nancy Drew brand?
Mark -- "For me, it's like designing a movie poster for a blockbuster movie each time. I get to immerse myself into the particular theme of that title and really try to present the game experience in the most dramatic way possible.
People often ask me which Nancy Drew package is my favorite, and I honestly choose the most current one, because I get so emotionally involved in them. When I look back, there probably are a few I appreciate more than others, The Creature of Kapu Cave, Legend of the Crystal Skull and Ransom of the Seven Ships are three that come to mind, but I think The Captive Curse is my favorite... for now :)"
Thanks Mark for sharing with us!
Pre-order The Captive Curse now!
Wed, 2011-06-01 15:01 — HerInteractive
It’s finally here! The Captive Curse is now available for pre-order! When you pre-order from us, you will receive the Special Edition game that bonus content and additional game play…so get your copy today. Pre-orders end on June 15th.
Also, don’t forget to check out the official trailer for The Captive Curse that was just posted on our YouTube channel and The Captive Curse product page.
Get The Captive Curse before the special edition version is gone!
May Newsletter: Memorial Weekend Sale!
Fri, 2011-05-27 17:31 — HerInteractiveIt's finally here! The May newsletter just went out, so check your mailboxes for the Memorial Weekend Sale and all of the latest news: View the May newsletter.
Need to catch up on what's been going on? Check out our Newsletter Archive!
If you haven't subscribed to our monthly newsletter, sign up to receive June's.
Have a great Memorial Day weekend!
(Just a reminder: Our offices will be closed Monday, May 30th to observe Memorial day). See you Tuesday!
The Captive Curse Box Art
Tue, 2011-05-17 10:26 — HerInteractiveToday we have an exciting update! Here is the official box art for The Captive Curse! With the help of several creative employees describing what the story, focus, and important elements are to this game, the designer came up with several different compositions. These compositions went through extensive edits, endured lots of critique, and in the end…we came up with this result: A beautiful rendition of a female hand loosely clutching an elegant necklace. The German burg (castle) sits high in the forest as a girl in traditional clothing races for safety through the woods. Take a close look at the necklace: it holds the image of an ominous silhouette!
The word is out! Pre-orders for this new game begin on June 1st. Stay tuned for more updates and information!
Minimum Requirements Update
Thu, 2011-05-12 11:46 — HerInteractiveWe are giving you a heads-up concerning some minor changes to our minimum requirements for our games to run. Many of you will not have to worry since many computers are already equipped and prepared for the latest and best gaming experiences. But just in case, please see below:
NANCY DREW on PC Computers
WINDOWS MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS
Windows® XP, Vista, or Windows 7, 1.5 GHZ or greater Pentium 4 or equivalent class CPU, 512 MB of RAM, 2 GB or more hard drive space, 64 MB DirectX 9.0 compatible video card, 16 bit DirectX compatible sound card, 4x DVD drive, mouse and speakers.
NANCY DREW on Mac Computers
MAC MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS Mac OS X 10.5.8 Leopard/10.6.6 Snow Leopard or higher, Intel processor, 512 MB RAM, 2.1 GB or more hard drive space, Intel GMA 950, ATI X1600, NVIDIA 7300 graphics card or better, keyboard and mouse, internet connection the first time the game is launched. This game will NOT run on PowerPC (G3/G4/G5) based Mac systems (PowerMac).
The biggest change is that The Captive Curse will be on a DVD, meaning you need a DVD drive instead of a simple CD-ROM drive to run this game. Most of your computers already have this and therefore you would have nothing to worry about. This change means there will only be one disc to play and install (no disc switching during installation!).
We did this with you in mind, so that we can give you the best and most exciting gameplay, puzzles, cinematic, story, and characters for an amazing Nancy Drew adventure experience! We hope you will enjoy the upcoming game and that with our upgrade in technology we will be able to meet all of your expectations. The Captive Curse is just around the corner, are you ready for it?
Interview with Alex, Game Production Programmer
Tue, 2011-05-10 11:04 — HerInteractiveWe interviewed our Game Production Programmer, Alex, to give you an inside look at what it takes to create a Nancy Drew adventure game.
HI: What do you do as Game Production Programmer?
Alex: “Responsibilities include implementation of game logic, game play and puzzle scripting/programming; sound and video file conversion; asset integration; add/test in-game sequences; find/research bugs and enter into bug tracking system; additional testing tasks; managing game builds; research and schedule maintenance as well as other duties as assigned.
So, the quick answer could be “a little bit of everything.” Essentially everything flows through a pipeline before it gets to me. Art develops all the pretty pictures and we process and integrate that into the build. Design and Script write out all of the logic, and we in Production implement it. Ideally, as we build the environments, we would catch all of these localized problems, thereby minimizing the bugs.
On top of that, we also mine our sound library for all of the sound effects in the game, build puzzles, and run test passes on the game towards the end of the development cycle.”
HI: What sort of projects are you currently working on?
Alex: “Currently I am implementing logic for a large environment for the next game. It’s a rather complicated location, as Nancy will be spending quite a bit of time in there, so it will probably take me several days to get everything in. I spent most of last week working on puzzles and finishing up one of the smaller conversations.”
HI: What happens to your work once you are finished?
Alex: “Once I finish a project, I inform Testing and they go to work hammering at it from every conceivable direction.
Any problems Testing finds get sent back to me in the form of bug reports. I fix them, send it back to Testing, and we repeat this process until Testing can’t come up with any problems. At which point, the game is finished, we send off the build to get disseminated to the public.”
HI: What is fun about this work?
Alex: “The most fun part of work is definitely building puzzles. Navigation, game logic, even conversations, are pretty much done the same every time, but each puzzle is often a unique challenge. Building a puzzle is kind of like a puzzle unto itself; there are all of these separate pieces and they have to be put together to form a larger system. There is rarely only one way to go about it, and it’s fun building puzzles that push you, force you to think of things in different ways to accomplish tasks in the most efficient methods possible.”
Thanks Alex for taking the time to share with us!
Happy Mother's Day!
Tue, 2011-05-03 10:18 — HerInteractiveI wouldn’t have known who Nancy Drew was if it wasn’t for my mom and grandmother, who introduced me to this great heroine. As a young child who enjoyed reading about adventures and mysteries, I received several Nancy Drew books from them. The faded, worn look and feel of a vintage copy was cherished and I was thrilled over the glossy re-prints that helped grow my collection. Mom not only encouraged me to read, but she would read the books with me, and later we would converse about the exciting story Nancy was involved in.
Mother’s day is coming up, remember to thank her in your own special way for all that she has done for you, whether it be encouraging you to read or encouraging you to be the best you can be no matter what the endeavor. If your mom hasn’t tried a Nancy Drew game yet, we hope you’ll consider the Nancy Drew Dossier game “Resorting to Danger” on sale for $14.99 this month only. It’s the perfect introduction to the digital world of Nancy Drew that can be shared with the both of you. Please join us as we celebrate Moms this weekend. They are our teachers and cheer leaders who love us so very much, let’s give them a cheer back!
Happy Easter Detectives!
Tue, 2011-04-26 14:12 — HerInteractiveSunday was Easter and for many fans this was a time of celebration. There are all sorts of colorful decorations for the celebrations of these holidays, and for this season in particular there were a lot of pastel colors. Whether you have walked down a store aisle, or made a huge mess with your artistic creations, you were bound to have come across an iconic Easter feature: Easter Eggs!
Last year we explained what Easter Eggs are, but for those who aren't familiar, I will refresh the description. Easter Eggs look like actual eggs that are colorfully decorated and are placed somewhere inside the game environments. They are well hidden and often require a little extra effort and work to earn them. These are only for fun and for your extra enjoyment, and therefore are not necessary for completing the game. Here are a couple of eggs from the past games for you to find.
Earn 9990 pennies to purchase the unknown Mystery box in Pa’s store and use what’s inside to find the egg.
-- Shadow at the Water’s Edge:
Print out the ghost image from your cell phone at the photo booth in the parlor.
That’s not all, though! There are several more eggs to find in the games, but I’ll let you discover them on your own. It’s always rewarding when you work hard to find a treasure. How many have you found?
With the end of Easter weekend comes the end of the Nancy Drew Cake Design contest, and we must say that we are overwhelmed by the number of submissions! There are so many of you who are talented in the art of cake baking and decorating! Keep an eye out, because we will be posting the finalists on Facebook by 5pm PST April 29th.
Good luck detectives!
