GameZone - "Her Interactive has just released their tenth Nancy Drew adventure, The Secret of Shadow Ranch. With such a long running series as this, there usually comes a time when the material becomes old and stale. But Her Interactive, so far, has avoided this problem and continues to improve the games by adding minor changes, while maintaining the solid gameplay that has made this series so successful."

Four Fat Chicks - "It's hard to envision a better first adventure game for a preteen person—girl or boy. The story is "safe," interesting, and in a wide-open western setting replete with legends, romance and novel characters."

PC Magazine - "This modernized version of the classic teenage sleuth Nancy Drew uses a fancy Web-enabled cell phone (call the Hardy Boys for help!), yet she retains an Eisenhower-era politeness. In this game, based on the best-selling book of the series, you become a ranch hand and solve a mystery through a diverse series of puzzles, from sorting vegetables to tracking down a phantom horse."