MID Discussion, Release Date, Unity Etc Part 2

[Yurithecat]

Isn't it sad that the old version was basically just thrown away? I mean, at this point, they should have skipped Unity completely and finished MID. Then they could start the next game in the series with the new engine. Again, this points to another underlying issue in the company.

[Belle Book]

Re: MID Discussion, Release Date, Unity Etc Part 2

I'm wondering how HER was "restructured" or gutted in the first place. Maybe someone can explain it for me.

[Det.JA]

I've been binging all of Tammy's podcasts where she interviews the previous HeR Interactive employees.

It seems to me that everything, from the game selection to the decisions at HeR was pretty much make or break. The whole 2 games a year thing wasn't a convenience to fans, it was to keep the company from going out of business due to shelf life constraints on PC games!

The games were purposely shorter because they were trying to stay afloat period! It takes real hard work and dedication to have two separate development teams (with the small company they had, no less!) to be able to work on two mysteries, two story arcs, two collections of puzzles, and more!

Now that I know this tidbit of information, I now realize that bigger isn't always better for a company. Growing too big too fast can demolish a company's financial assets.

If HeR can manage to scrounge their determination up and release MID, I hope they can get out of this rut.

Nancy Drew games are the reason why I decided to go into Computer Science. They are the reason why I'm a programmer/Software Engineer today. They are the reason why I spent so many days and nights figuring out algorithms and learning new langauges. I'll be damned if I see this company blow up in smoke.

What's even more disappointing is that HeR hasn't said anything. I'm sure that if they were more transparent with fans, you would probably see all kinds of super fans come out from the woodworks, all ready to come and help in any way they can, even for free in some cases.

[nancycluedrew]

I'm wondering how HER was "restructured" or gutted in the first place. Maybe someone can explain it for me.

People are referring to the fact that HER let go of their creative team who made the games in-house. Now only the marketing team and the CEO remain, apparently. That's the restructured part.

I've been binging all of Tammy's podcasts where she interviews the previous HeR Interactive employees.

It seems to me that everything, from the game selection to the decisions at HeR was pretty much make or break. The whole 2 games a year thing wasn't a convenience to fans, it was to keep the company from going out of business due to shelf life constraints on PC games!

The games were purposely shorter because they were trying to stay afloat period! It takes real hard work and dedication to have two separate development teams (with the small company they had, no less!) to be able to work on two mysteries, two story arcs, two collections of puzzles, and more!

Now that I know this tidbit of information, I now realize that bigger isn't always better for a company. Growing too big too fast can demolish a company's financial assets.

Where did you get this info? Is it from the most recent podcast?

[Emerald12]

I'm kind of expecting an update in maybe mid August like they did 2 years ago. Hopefully it will be about when they expect to release the game.

[Yurithecat]

I've been binging all of Tammy's podcasts where she interviews the previous HeR Interactive employees. .

Me too!

Where did you get this info? Is it from the most recent podcast?

It is from the most recent podcast.

[phoenix star]

It seems to me that everything, from the game selection to the decisions at HeR was pretty much make or break. The whole 2 games a year thing wasn't a convenience to fans, it was to keep the company from going out of business due to shelf life constraints on PC games!

The games were purposely shorter because they were trying to stay afloat period! It takes real hard work and dedication to have two separate development teams (with the small company they had, no less!) to be able to work on two mysteries, two story arcs, two collections of puzzles, and more!

Wow. If that's the case, it's a miracle they made it to the 2010s at all.

Now that I know this tidbit of information, I now realize that bigger isn't always better for a company. Growing too big too fast can demolish a company's financial assets.

This pretty much sums it up. Penny thought they were Disney and blew all their money.

[Yurithecat]

This pretty much sums it up. Penny thought they were Disney and blew all their money.

I miss Megan. At the very least, she would have told the truth about MID.

[tsukiakari]

Honestly, I miss Stuart Moulder. He was involved with video game development for a very long time and I think he really knew what he was doing. There may not have been many non-main series games produced during his tenure, but that might have been for the best. I don't think he would have put C&C into production at the expense of MID, if that's indeed what's happened here. I wasn't around enough to remember how Megan acted, but I do recall Stuart being open and friendly, appearing in office videos, and writing letters to the fans thanking them for their support. I think stuff like that would encourage the fanbase a lot in these trying times.

I'm wondering how HER was "restructured" or gutted in the first place. Maybe someone can explain it for me.

Everyone involved with creating the games basically lost their jobs. As Tedbear2 said, Her's use of "we" doesn't actually encompass the company anymore - there's no one left to develop games in-house. That means no writers, no 2D or 3D artists, no puzzle designers, etc etc. But there have been no details shared about how MID is being developed now, outside of it being outsourced. (And, unfortunately, no details shared about why the "gutting" took place, either.)

[Polar50011]

Frustrations and Venting

I'm kind of expecting an update in maybe mid August like they did 2 years ago. Hopefully it will be about when they expect to release the game.

That would be sweet.
I legit came on here like three months ago last and it appears that nothing has changed since then. Same rumors circulating, same speculations of whats to happen, and most importantly, no change taking place. I feel that at this point if HER isn't going to put out the game anytime soon, they need to just scrap it off of the front page of the website with the whole "coming soon", cause its not!

People here have been playing two games per year and now making them wait 2 years, its too much. I agree with the previous comment as well when someone said that if Unity is such a difficult platform then put MID out regularly and at least HER will buy themselves 6 more months from their fans nagging. To some extent this feels like what i am doing now, nagging, but at the same time being MIA and us having to wait 5-6 months for just another sliver of information of "hang on guys, were running into more trouble..coming soon" is not okay.

I am a huge fan of of these games. I was playing since I was 13 and i'm an adult now lol. So yes, my patience is running thin. But i think at this point I am even more frustrated for all the other fans and younger kids playing this game because I believe that it is educational and fun and teaches these girls and boys something, and I am really hopeful that they wont stop making these games because this game is what I was raised on and I love it.

[paperstreet]

Isn't it sad that the old version was basically just thrown away? I mean, at this point, they should have skipped Unity completely and finished MID. Then they could start the next game in the series with the new engine. Again, this points to another underlying issue in the company.

It's like the advice they give entrepreneurs starting a new company: dont give up your day job.

They really should have continued to do two games a year with the old team and platform to at least have income coming in and not lose their fanbase, while in the background outsourcing all of a new unity game (without even telling anyone). Then they could have released the unity game when it was finished, even if it took years to do, as it is taking years to do anyway

[Det.JA]

It's like the advice they give entrepreneurs starting a new company: dont give up your day job.

They really should have continued to do two games a year with the old team and platform to at least have income coming in and not lose their fanbase, while in the background outsourcing all of a new unity game (without even telling anyone). Then they could have released the unity game when it was finished, even if it took years to do, as it is taking years to do anyway

I definitely agree with this. Why fix what's not broken?
What I find even more sad is that Sea of Darkness fits the current situation we're in. The last two years have been a "sea of Darkness" concerning MID.

[Solver]

HeR's not talking. I don't know what anyone did, would do or would have done. I don't even know the factors that they would consider!

But I wonder this: Who is supplying the continuity, familiarity, or essential ND concepts, to Unity? Does Unity have a Nancy Drew expert who is aligning MID with the essence of the ND world?

[Yurithecat]

I definitely agree with this. Why fix what's not broken?
What I find even more sad is that Sea of Darkness fits the current situation we're in. The last two years have been a "sea of Darkness" concerning MID.

It's brings a new meaning to "The Word I Couldn't Keep."

[Det.JA]

It's brings a new meaning to "The Word I Couldn't Keep."

Oh wow, that is deep. (Time for the sea puns.) And that was such a good song too.

You know, SEA was probably one of the best Nancy Drew games I played. They kept the suspense building, the graphics were beautiful, the locations were aplenty (considering the constraints of company resources), the characters were memorable, and the puzzles were fun.

In hindsight, the home brew HeR engine itself wasn't perfect. But instead of using Unity, HeR made their own engine from the ground up. That is admirable.

Instead of replacing the engine altogether, they should've just made modifications to it, modernizing it. And of course, if they wanted to make a mobile version of their game, then have the programmers work on that on the side.

That's my two cents anyway.