Nancy Drew Dossier: Lights,Camera, Curses!
Dossier is a new format for a the Nancy Drew games - more casual,
shorter, downloadable - what Her Interactive refers to as, "Mystery hunt and peck game".
In this case, Nancy is called in to investigate strange happenings
on the set of the Pharaoh, where a controversial remake of a 1930's movie is being produced.
In the original movie, the actress died before the end of the movie which
resulted in alternate endings and a box office smash.
In each scene, the player must find the hidden objects and combine them to
make yet another object - one which will solve a puzzle or problem and further the game.
It's easy but not too easy, and it helps to have a sparkly effect hinting at the objects.
In the darker spots, Nancy's flashlight comes in handy and her magnifying glass is always available.
Her Interactive has a fondness for mechanical puzzles and so Nancy is splicing wires,
repairing generators, picking locks.
The graphics are painterly, not cartoon-like, and while you see animated headshots
of the characters in the story, Nancy herself is still in first-person mode.
It will be hard to woo me away from the Classic PC Nancy Drew - but this was a very good attempt.
Her Interactive wisely used the same Nancy voice and made a very good mystery game.
I did miss the usual PC introductory music - this one sounded a little like
Masterpiece Theater's Mystery series.
Reviewed by: Editor - 12/08
Ages: Everyone
Fun Factor: A nice, not so little mystery
Female Factor: Nancy rocks
Player Friendly: Needs better hints for players who get stuck