Product Description

You, as Nancy Drew, are invited by a friend to San Francisco to assist in the renovation of a Victorian mansion. But, there are other uninvited guests, visitors from the past--spirits who want the place all to themselves. Nancy suspects that there is another force at work: greed. According to legend, a fortune in long-lost gold is hidden somewhere on the property and someone is determined to find it.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2687 in Video Games
• Color: Message in a Haunted Mansion
• Brand: Her Interactive
• Released on: 2000-11-23
• ESRB Rating: Everyone
• Platforms: Windows 98, Windows 2000, Windows Me, Windows XP, Windows 95
• Format: CD-ROM

Amazon.com Review
Step into the stylish shoes of teen supersleuth Nancy Drew to crack the case of the haunted mansion. As Nancy, you'll hang your hat in San Francisco, where you've been invited to help a family friend renovate a historic Victorian home. Some strange things have been happening in the old house--could it be spirits from the past, or just shifty characters on the make? Use your magnifying glass to search the place from top to bottom for clues. You'll find trap doors, personal papers, keys, tools--all sorts of spots and items to explore or hang onto for later use. You never know when you might need a paint scraper or crowbar to help you out of a bind. To fill in some of the gaps, talk to characters in the game, and choose your responses to their questions based on what you want to know.

Play Message in a Haunted Mansion in one of two modes: new or younger players can sign in as junior detectives for more simplified play, while old pros can log in as senior detectives for serious sleuthing. Once you're in, you may never want to leave--the graphic detail of the Victorian-mansion setting is stellar. The Chinese-influenced décor is authentically and exquisitely reproduced, and many elements can be highlighted to better focus on the level of detail. (Those interested in Victorian interiors will be especially pleased.) Also realistic are often-overlooked touches that add a true-to-life ring, such as photos of family and friends on the wall, and sunglasses kept in the kitchen drawer. The sound effects further add to the sense of realism and heighten the air of suspense. You'll hear doors and cabinets creak open and shut, haunting cries, and loose chandeliers swaying overhead.

This third installment in the popular Nancy Drew interactive series (a follow-up to Stay Tuned for Danger and Secrets Can Kill) is successful not just for its design and production, but for its thoughtful features that keep players hooked, even as things start to feel hopeless. When you're in a bind, you can call home or old friends Bess and George for help. And if you make a game-ending decision, simply pick up right where you left off before the terminal mistake by utilizing the Second Chance feature. There's even a self-updating journal in Nancy's suitcase that records clues as you find them, to help you keep track of all the facts you unearth. And, of course, you can save your game after each session--no backtracking through clues you've already found, or conversations you've already had.

Our only complaint: the game takes some time to install, which can be hard to stomach if you've played the previous Nancy Drew games and are as excited to play the third as we were. But once you're in the game and can see the wealth of what awaits, you'll realize that it's worth a lengthy installation. A nice improvement over previous games is the inclusion of a tutorial to explain gameplay to new users. (Ages 10 and older) --Leah Ball

Amazon.com Product Description
In this interactive mystery game, girls play as teenage supersleuth Nancy Drew, called upon to help a friend renovate a beautiful Victorian mansion. But there's trouble afoot ... from collapsing scaffolds to leaking gas, suspect fires to ghostly threats, Nancy is about to stumble onto a secret that someone--living or dead--would rather keep unknown. Follow your hunches as you explore a fully interactive three-dimensional mansion filled with peepholes, trapdoors, and hidden passageways. Interview fellow guests, poke around dusty nooks, and uncover cryptic messages. Clues, dead-ends, and trickery abound. Created especially for girls ages 10 and up, Nancy Drew features two "spy IQ" levels of difficulty, more than 20 hours of gameplay, helpful hints if you need them, 3-D graphics, and much more.

From Parents' Choice®
Will Nancy uncover what's behind the series of accidents at the creepy Victorian mansion her friends are restoring into a bed and breakfast? Why is the clock in Nancy's room set at 8:30 a.m. and the alarm set for 9 a.m.? What does the arcane inscription, "When the 10 daughters are reunited in order . . .," on the tapestry mean? Will Abby's séance reveal the secrets of the haunted mansion? And why are the "spirits" in the house interested especially in Nancy? These and other mysteries begin to unfold with the opening scene in the third of these remarkable Nancy Drew interactive role-playing games that put players right in the middle of trying to solve another classic Nancy Drew case. Fans of Nancy Drew books step into their young heroine's shoes as she investigates the mansion's various rooms in search of clues. Especially compelling software for pre-teen and early teenage girls, this 3-D cyber-mystery is totally from the first-person detective perspective-doing everything from unlocking creaky doors, jimmying secret bed-post knobs, questioning suspects and witnesses, calling cohorts on the phone, and collecting evidence to build a case. But not without some help: The short interactive tutorial will get newcomers started right, the magnifying-glass cursor turns red when passing across a clue or a direction worth taking, and the ever-present help icon saves the day if players get stuck. Graphics and animation is dramatic and realistic. The voices, spooky background organ music and special effects are crisp and fun. But the evolving storyline is the star of the software--except for Nancy, that is. A 2000 Parents' Choice® Gold Award.

Reviewed by Don Oldenburg, Parents' Choice® 2000

Customer Reviews

Nancy Drew: Message in a Haunted Mansion
If you thought the books were good, the games are way cooler! Full of intrigue, mystery and fun. You play a girl detective named Nancy Drew, who is helping her friend Rose turn an old mansion into a cozy inn. When things go awry and questions are asked, Nancy rolls up her sleeves and plunges into her next suspenseful mystery! While being the typical 'Who-done-it' type game, Her Interactive adds another element, making this a sure candidate for Game of The Year! Although boys might think this is a "sissy" game for little girls, don't be surprised if suddenly you find them at the computer unable to tear themselves away! Excellent graphics, unique gameplay, and absolute non-stop fun! I highly recommend this game, a must buy!!!!!

Rich Graphics, Fun Gameplay, and Spooky Suspense
Let me preface this review: I am 22 years old. I am not a "gamer". I love to play computer games now and then, but it seems that 99% of those games are impossible to solve (or at least they aren't solved before I become frustrated enough to quit). I thought I would try this game out, as I love the Victorian age, and I grew up on Nancy Drew. Fantastic!

The player wanders around a richly done up Victorian mansion. Oil paintings and fine tapestries adorn the walls. There are plenty of secret passages and other neat "finds" along the way. Stuck? Just go down to the parlor, pick up the Victorian reproduction phone and dial Bess and George, your trusty friends. You can also dial home to talk to Hannah, your housekeeper, or call in a favor with a local journalist. I am certainly not in the age range of this game's target audience, and I still needed to refer to the parlor phone to get through a few binds.

The background music is suspenseful and appropriately creepy. The sound effects will raise goosebumps. This game was a 6 hour immersion for me, and I was thrilled with it.

The only problem? It was 6 hours. Now? The game is over and I know all the puzzles, I know where to find what I need to get through the game again. This game will be great to watch others play, but I don't know that I will get the same joy again. I just wish that there was some other "after you win" features. Maybe a chance to explore the mansion further? How about getting to decorate my own Bed and Breakfast? I guess its too much to ask. Regardless of its short gameplay, this software is phenomenal! I only wish this sort of treat was available ten years ago, when software for girls was almost unheard of!

Enjoyed Nancy Drew at 7, still enjoying her at 57!
Thought "Message in a Haunted Mansion" would be a wonderful gift for my 8 year old grand-daughter. However, when she wasn't around I started playing the senior level and became addicted in the first 10 minutes. The graphics are a delight, the plot intriging and the hints and clues picked up much harder to put together then I anticipated. I haven't enjoyed any role playing game this much since the earlier Kings Quest (when you could still get through them without having to buy a hint book). Oh, and the last visit by my grand-daughter meant hours of fun as we played the game together. So, here I've evolved from reading Nancy Drew books as a youngster to playing Nancy Drew games as a grandmother. Who would have seen that one coming? Now, I'm off to purchase the first two Nancy Drew computer games! What a kick!