Video Game Review: Nancy Drew: The Deadly Device

During school breaks, my sister and I have a tradition of playing games from Her Interactive's Nancy Drew series, and therefore, I've been a fan of it since childhood. So when I saw the cover of The Deadly Device, I just about died of excitement.

Further examination reveals a plot dripping with steampunkness, and, to my great joy, lots of references to Nikola Tesla. The plot begins with a modern-day scientific genius being murdered in the midst of an experiment based on Tesla's theories. A police investigation reveals nothing, so the owner of the lab takes the obvious next step: hiring a teenager, of course! (Suspension of disbelief, people. Use it.) And that's where you, playing as girl detective Nancy Drew, come in.

To begin with, I won't be able to review this without comparing it to it's many predecessors. The occasionally tedious point-and-click puzzle formula remains unchanged throughout the series, but the plot lines, remarkably, have grown less predictable in the later games. Whereas the early Nancy Drew games almost always put the most friendly and non-suspicious character in the role of perpetrator, The Deadly Device kept me guessing all the way through, and with all the suspicious characters and misleading clues, it really did feel like walking into a mystery novel.

Those who play this series for the scare factor will be disappointed. Her Interactive has indeed been flirting with the horror genre quite a bit as of late, but not once throughout the Deadly Device was I genuinely scared. This wasn't really a problem, per-se, as the mystery aspects and epic steampunk scenery were more than enough to keep me engaged, I can't help but wonder if a good scare or two might have made it more memorable.

As a side note, I originally meant to do a let's-play of this, which failed due to some technical issues. But, if at some point in the distant future, I actually find a decent screen capture program, I might go through with it. If I do, I'll put a link on this page, so feel free to check every now and then if you're interested.

To the Moon!

It was an arduous journey, but, after many complications, from stubborn robots to an outer-space collision with Santa Claus, I have at long last arrived on the moon!

Ah, pardon me--I'm afraid I got Tesla Con III confused with reality. It was that immersive. Even the signs for the bathrooms were themed. Likewise, the staff remained in character throughout the event--I was at one point approached by a doctor asking if I had any symtoms of hysteria--and the attendees naturally followed suit.

The voyage itself did not start until late in the evening, but there were plenty of amusements until then. I attended a panel on Victorian music, failed dissmally at a tea duel, (remind me to post on these subjects later on) and had a lovely dinner of fish and chips. At present, due to technical issues, I cannot post any pictures, but I promise to get them up as soon as possible.

Tesla Time!

I announce with great excitement that I will be attending Tesla Con in Madison, Wisconsin next weekend. Rumor has it that an expedition to the previously unexplored surface of the moon is being planned for the event. Naturally, a curious aethernet logger such as myself simply cannot resist the call of such scientific progress.

Having sewn a dress for the event (my first made from scratch!) and gathered a notebook and pen, I am set and ready to go.

Traveling with me is a relative of mine, the scientist Alexia von Linz, who hopes that the moon may contain new species of life yet unknown to mankind. The prospect of such a discovery would be of great excitement to an aether-journalist such as myself.

Naturally, I will be posting as preparations continue, and I shall take careful notes about our extraterrestrial travels. If I fail to do so, please bombard this page with complaints.

Nikola Tesla = Awesome

That is an irrefutable fact, as proven by this cartoon in the Oatmeal. Is it weird to be a fangirl of someone who's been dead for over half a century?