Nancy Drew Shadow at the Water's Edge Review

Hey Nancy Drew fans! Because it's been over a month since I've played and beat the game Nancy Drew: Shadow at the Water's Edge, I decided to write my very first video game review for it! Here we go ...

Trailer:



Release Date: October 2010
Rating: E10+ (Everyone ages 10 and up)
Producer: HERinteractive
Game Number: #23

Description: Terror Ripples through a Japanese Inn! Traditional Japanese family ryokans (inns) are charming places, but a vengeful ghost is terrifying you and other unsuspecting guests. Is there a shadowy specter haunting this placid inn or is something far more sinister driving away business? Check in as Nancy Drew and see if you can uncover the secrets submerged in the Shadow at the Water's Edge!

Review:

First off, I have to say this game was AWESOME. The plot was well-structured and made sense, the characters were alive with emotion (unlike the characters in Trail of the Twister), and the setting made me feel like I was actually in Japan! Amazing game overall.

Story: The aforementioned plot of SAW is put together pretty well. There may be a few noticeable holes in it (like the whole "Yumi's secret" part), but everything flows together pretty nicely and quite creepily. The game focuses mainly on the hauntings that have occurred at the Ryokan Hiei--this is good material for a Nancy Drew game. There is a bit of darkness to this plot, because someone drowned in the ryokan and the characters pretty much refuse to talk to you about it. But in my opinion, this is just what makes the game more mysterious and intriguing.

Characters: I loved just about every character in this game. A few of them were pretty fun to talk to; others, I enjoyed pushing their buttons a little (once to the point where I got kicked out of the ryokan!). There was nothing too vague about any of the characters, although I would've liked to talk to Savannah Woodham, the ghost hunter, some more. There were backstories behind the characters that you learned about later in the game from the other characters. By the time I got to the end of the game, I was pretty darn upset with who the culprit turned out to be. I felt that the characters in SAW were pretty unique, and I hope maybe HERinteractive will consider recycling a few of them in the next ND games!

Setting: The setting was ... beautiful. The ryokan was gorgeous and cultural, although a little creepy (which was totally intended, I'm sure). I really liked Yumi's apartment, for some reason. And there was so much to explore in the ryokan, plus they captured the "creepy, haunted spot" really well. And yet ... the game left me thirsting for more Japan. I would have liked to see some more of the city, and more Japanese tradition in the city, maybe, and some other modern things in Japanese culture in the city. I don't know, I felt like the guys at HERinteractive could have expanded the setting of the game a whole lot more.

Music: Oh my gosh, the music is FANTASTIC!!!! It's pants-wetting scary when it needs to be, and then serene and beautiful and cultural when it should be. Plus, that upbeat techno pop music in the city? ♥♥♥ The music-making people of this game get an A+++ for their efforts to scare the snot out of us.

Scariness: And I thought the MUSIC was scary! Man, some parts of this game were just chilling. I do have to say, though, that there are only really two times you see the ghost. And if you haven't seen pictures or footage of the ghost before ... you will be scared! I know I was, but after I got over the initial shock, I kept replaying the part when the ghost popped up, again and again. The time when it pops up in the bath house is DEFINITELY the scariest encounter. But not unlike the setting of SAW, I feel that they could have expanded and made the game really scary if they tried. To be frank, I'm not sure this game should have earned the title "the scariest Nancy Drew game yet," unless you are a total scaredy-cat (which I thought I was until I discovered that I could actually get through this game without freaking out). Just my opinion.

Puzzles: Last but not least, puzzles. Most of the puzzles in the game were pretty challenging to the point that they had me looking up the answers for them. A few were simpler, and less complex. For example, I was really stuck on the bento boxes, but once things clicked in my head, I was a bento-box pro! Some puzzles were just plain irritating, like the train one, but once you got through them, it was all right. So in conclusion, SAW had some great puzzles for people who like puzzles (and honestly, I'm not one of those people!).

So all in all, Nancy Drew: Shadow at the Water's Edge was an interesting game that was as creepy as its title, but yet totally awesome on so many different levels. If you are over ten years of age and can stand the sight of a ghost, then I recommend this game for you! And if you can't stand the sight of a ghost ... really guys, it's not that bad. Seriously.

And so ...

4.5 out of 5 stars! Great job on this one, HERinteractive!

-Kira