My thoughts on these rumors

[Narcissa Malfoy]

I am getting concerned with the endless PR conveyor line of promising updates but not delivering on them. Despite this, I still feel that I need to believe in HeR Interactive as a company and trust that they will deliver MID to us, even if we're all old and grey and in rocking chairs at that point.

I miss the good old days where LJ would say one week on her blog, "Hey! We did this this week and are going to work on that next." I guess with the transition to Unity and all that involves, they want to keep their cards close to their chests in case something goes wrong.

But we are their fans. We have the right to be involved in this transition process, too.

I agree with a lot of what this post says. But the optimist in me wants to say that whatever merger HeR might encounter would be beneficial. Imagine if HeR were owned by a larger company, but operated with their own staff and their own people. The parent company might issue some stipulations and restrictions, sure, but to me, that would be the ideal case scenario.

It's not even just HeR, I feel like the entire industry of making PC games is not quite as vibrant as it used to be. That's speculation though, so poke holes in that if you will.

[Polar50011]

I feel like the entire industry of making PC games is not quite as vibrant as it used to be. That's speculation though, so poke holes in that if you will.

Agreed. If you go to any game store there is only one tiny section of PC games in the corner amongst the heavy hitters of XBOX PLAYSTATION and even WII. I am surprised that HeR hasn't come out with all the games for all those devices already and are sticking with the PC platform (which is kind of nostalgic too at this point, so its nice, plus its not like Nancy games need to be on the big screen, its a strategy point and click game, not too much action there).

[belfadisa]

I haven't really had much problems at WalMart stores in my area with ND games. I get the double features even. Two games all in one. They seem to always have at least one ND game available but the older games I am having a hard time finding now.

[Arianna12]

What has been neglected to mention is the absolutely THRIVING PC game industry that exists digitally, with multiple platforms that I don't know if I'm allowed to mention. They bring in millions if not billions in revenue each year (I haven't looked up exact statistics) and provide a great platform, particularly for indie developers to get their work out there.

With these sites out there, it doesn't make sense for PC/MAC titles to be released physically anymore, there's a smaller audience (not everyone can go to a physical game store but everyone can access these online sites) and there's a greater production cost with making the physical game.

I've actually suggested this before, but I think if HER were to really utilize these sites they could see a huge jump in sales, particularly as most of these have their own separate fan communities within the gaming platform.

Bottom line is, PC gaming is far from dead.

~Ari

[tsukiakari]

I don't know if this is off-topic or what - my intention is just to clear things up, so sorry if there's anything particularly rule-breaking - but I recall reading a recent comment on Her's Facebook clarifying that Steam doesn't accept the ND games. I believe the comment was from Her itself, and of course there was no reason given, so I don't know what's up with that, but hey...if that's the way it is, that's the way it is, I guess!

One thing that I always have to mention when the topic of digital downloading comes up is that I'm not comfortable with it, because of what it's beginning to become. It's been bandied about that, by enforcing policies such as having to be online to start the game and such, companies are maintaining a stronger hold over their property, but I've never been very happy with that concept. All I'm doing is just playing a game that I like, and I'd prefer to be able to do it on my own terms, and even on the go if I wish. Not having full control over what I can do with a product I purchased makes me feel like I'm just renting it, which sorta defeats the purpose of owning it in the first place.

Of course all of this doesn't apply to Her, since their digital editions of games are pretty much just giant installation files that you can burn to CDs or copy to USB drives. I very much appreciate this and hope it stays the same, although I'll continue buying physical copies of new games as long as they're made (if I ever have occasion to buy a new ND game again ) just to continue building up my collection of cases. (Though that's just my bias...it bothers me that I don't have jewel cases with official booklets for a lot of the early- to middle-era games.)

Anyway, I know that physical copies are more expensive and whatnot, so reluctantly I have to accept that Her will probably stop manufacturing them soon. For what it's worth, the only place I've seen ND games for sale recently has been at a local Target, where they had like...one copy of SEA and maybe one or two lingering copies of other recent games. In the past I used to see the games even in stores like Staples, so things have definitely changed; I'm pretty sure Her has made little statements here and there about how it's become more difficult for them to get their games out to many stores.

I might add - to me, the digital PC game industry seems very much aimed at the opposite demographic from the ND players. I'm sure there's certainly an overlap between those who play...well, insert whatever multiplayer first-person shooter or multiplayer RPG or multiplayer whatever here...but I don't think the average PC gamer is going to look at ND and feel remotely interested. Similarly, I don't think many of the ND gamers are going to look at something like Overwatch (another one of those good ol' multiplayer first-person shooters) and feel remotely interested, or even have the capability to play (as I've said many a time, I'm unable to play virtually any brand-new games outside of ND because of graphical requirements, and I don't have the money to go out and craft a gaming PC like so many folks do). The ND games have always filled a very specific niche. I don't think they even overlap with other so-called "walking simulators" outside of gameplay style. So my point is, I'm not entirely sure if ND would see much more popularity if it tried to become more digitally oriented. (Maybe there'd be more Youtubers playing the games, but that might just result in fun being poked at how silly they can be sometimes, and not really any interest in the actual quality of the series...who knows.)

[Miss.Moonhart]

Last time I checked the games were on Steam. At least a bunch of them were.

[Arianna12]

Tsukiakari, here's my response just to clear up a couple of points :)

- While having some sort of company DRM in software is not that uncommon, forcing a player to be online/signed up to a specific games service is very much in the minority of games, which is why it always makes the news when a game comes out that is so specifically limited, because the majority of gamers don't like it. I've never had that restriction come up on Steam (where HER sells Nancy Drew games), and on the site Gog (Where HER sells CUR, so I assume I can mention it by name) they advertise very specifically as DRM free, meaning, as you said, you can download the game and it's yours to do with as you will.

- Also, while Nancy Drew gamers may not be interested in MMOs/shooters/etc., HER's games definitely have a huge appeal to the casual gaming/Hidden object/point and click adventure game crowd, of which there is a whole mess of people. Additionally, I've found that people who tend to play a range of genres, ie. action games, platformers, adventure games, RPGs, etc. are surprisingly willing to give almost anything a shot if they think it sounds interesting or are looking to kill time.

~Ari

[tsukiakari]

Last time I checked the games were on Steam. At least a bunch of them were.

Yeah, I've definitely seen some older games there myself, but I just checked and GTH is the last newer game listed (plus STFD-FIN are nowhere to be found, though weirdly there are demos for CRE, ICE, CRY, VEN, and...not HAU but RAN). Interestingly SHA was apparently (re?)released just a few days ago, so maybe Her is gearing up to release the rest of the games as well. As I said, I just remember seeing a comment on Facebook saying that there was some issue with making games available, but my memory is notoriously unreliable so there is a much-higher-than-50% chance that I'm wrong.

- While having some sort of company DRM in software is not that uncommon, forcing a player to be online/signed up to a specific games service is very much in the minority of games, which is why it always makes the news when a game comes out that is so specifically limited, because the majority of gamers don't like it. I've never had that restriction come up on Steam (where HER sells Nancy Drew games), and on the site Gog (Where HER sells CUR, so I assume I can mention it by name) they advertise very specifically as DRM free, meaning, as you said, you can download the game and it's yours to do with as you will.

That's good to know I've only heard about such things as these glancingly since I don't have much reason to keep up with state-of-the-art gaming news, so my thoughts are mainly a "what no I don't want that" kneejerk reaction of sorts. Hopefully it won't become more common in the future.

- Also, while Nancy Drew gamers may not be interested in MMOs/shooters/etc., HER's games definitely have a huge appeal to the casual gaming/Hidden object/point and click adventure game crowd, of which there is a whole mess of people. Additionally, I've found that people who tend to play a range of genres, ie. action games, platformers, adventure games, RPGs, etc. are surprisingly willing to give almost anything a shot if they think it sounds interesting or are looking to kill time.

Good point! When I'm saying things like in my last post, I'm mainly trying to think of how the games would be viewed by people used to more streamlined gaming experiences - the fact that ND doesn't even have basic video settings outside of fullscreen/windowed mode, and how out-of-date the graphics can be (unfortunately especially in the games considered among the best of the series, since those are all very old now), all that always seems to me like stuff that'd make some people lose interest. But I'm sure the casual gaming demographic wouldn't have a problem with this (I definitely don't), and I'm sure I'm selling lots of other gamers short. I guess ultimately, it depends on the person, and it's probably a mistake to assume so many people wouldn't enjoy the games. I should believe in the general Nancy Drew experience a bit more, eh?

[paperstreet]

I don't know if this is off-topic or what - my intention is just to clear things up, so sorry if there's anything particularly rule-breaking - but I recall reading a recent comment on Her's Facebook clarifying that Steam doesn't accept the ND games.

I might add - to me, the digital PC game industry seems very much aimed at the opposite demographic from the ND players.

Steam accepts just about everything though, arglefumph's games are published there and he isnt even a professional studio.

Re demographics, while that is true, Steam has published many games that are popular that are more ND-ish. Also ND used to publish on Big Fish, which is definitely not shooters.

My guess is that the margins they make are not enough on those platforms, and when they sell only on their own site they get more, although it is to a smaller audience.

[BooBoo'sNan]

In response to the original post, many larger gaming companies release games much more sporadically, sometimes with years apart from game to game in a series. The reason for this is that large companies are producing multiple games at a time which all take quite awhile to make. If HER were to sell, the games would not only be much different, but the release date for MID would probably be delayed even further. I'll explain.

Many fans, like myself, who are now adults and have played the games since childhood might be upset if a new company took over. Many long-time fans have been turned off in the past when big changes were made and might not hesitate to stop playing the games if the changes were sudden and drastic. At the same time however, HER is falling behind in an industry that relies upon continual improvements to remain relevant to younger generations. That is why HER switched to the Unity platform.

Secondly, another company might not treat the games as one might expect with "the respect it deserves." Since larger companies produce many games, the Nancy Drew Series as we know it would be thrown into the mix with dozens of other games in development. It is more likely that the Nancy Drew games would be stopped entirely if produced by another company. A larger company would simply stop making games that only appeal to a limited audience in the first place and put their efforts into making games with mass appeal. I think the reason why HER has lasted so long is that the company devotes itself to the series.

Yes, HER has to make changes in order to continue to make good-quality games, but I still think they are the best company that can and will produce what we Nancy Drew fans want not just what is popular in a flooded industry.

I disagree with almost everything you said, and I am a gamer who has been playing since childhood. I owned the original Pong game in 1976, and I have played and beaten every Nancy Drew game released to date.

However, you made your points intelligently and thoughtfully, so I will not take the time to expound on the points with which I disagree. I will let my original post speak for itself and your post speak for itself. I don't mind people disagreeing with me and I always welcome a spirited debate.

I will point out a disagreement with one comment you made – your last comment. You said you "still think they (Her) are the best company that can and will produce what we Nancy Drew fans want..." I submit to you that Her was the best company to release the Nancy Drew titles. Sadly, they are not in a position to release any titles at this time, and the demise of that company is imminent.

Thank you for your post.

[BooBoo'sNan]

What has been neglected to mention is the absolutely THRIVING PC game industry that exists digitally, with multiple platforms that I don't know if I'm allowed to mention. They bring in millions if not billions in revenue each year (I haven't looked up exact statistics) and provide a great platform, particularly for indie developers to get their work out there.

With these sites out there, it doesn't make sense for PC/MAC titles to be released physically anymore, there's a smaller audience (not everyone can go to a physical game store but everyone can access these online sites) and there's a greater production cost with making the physical game.

I've actually suggested this before, but I think if HER were to really utilize these sites they could see a huge jump in sales, particularly as most of these have their own separate fan communities within the gaming platform.

Bottom line is, PC gaming is far from dead.

~Ari

I beg your pardon if I have misunderstood your point – and I agree with the point I think you made – but I would like to point out that all Nancy Drew titles have digital releases just like any other computer games. I assume when you reference the PC gaming industry you are referring to games released online to be played on a PC or Mac.

I know Her offered physical copies of their games, but I cannot imagine many people paid extra for physical copies when you could immediately download the games upon their release, and I certainly cannot imagine why anyone would want to pay extra to get a physical copy of the games, but to each her own, I suppose.

[BooBoo'sNan]

I don't know if this is off-topic or what - my intention is just to clear things up, so sorry if there's anything particularly rule-breaking - but I recall reading a recent comment on Her's Facebook clarifying that Steam doesn't accept the ND games. I believe the comment was from Her itself, and of course there was no reason given, so I don't know what's up with that, but hey...if that's the way it is, that's the way it is, I guess!

One thing that I always have to mention when the topic of digital downloading comes up is that I'm not comfortable with it, because of what it's beginning to become. It's been bandied about that, by enforcing policies such as having to be online to start the game and such, companies are maintaining a stronger hold over their property, but I've never been very happy with that concept. All I'm doing is just playing a game that I like, and I'd prefer to be able to do it on my own terms, and even on the go if I wish. Not having full control over what I can do with a product I purchased makes me feel like I'm just renting it, which sorta defeats the purpose of owning it in the first place.

Of course all of this doesn't apply to Her, since their digital editions of games are pretty much just giant installation files that you can burn to CDs or copy to USB drives. I very much appreciate this and hope it stays the same, although I'll continue buying physical copies of new games as long as they're made (if I ever have occasion to buy a new ND game again ) just to continue building up my collection of cases. (Though that's just my bias...it bothers me that I don't have jewel cases with official booklets for a lot of the early- to middle-era games.)

Anyway, I know that physical copies are more expensive and whatnot, so reluctantly I have to accept that Her will probably stop manufacturing them soon. For what it's worth, the only place I've seen ND games for sale recently has been at a local Target, where they had like...one copy of SEA and maybe one or two lingering copies of other recent games. In the past I used to see the games even in stores like Staples, so things have definitely changed; I'm pretty sure Her has made little statements here and there about how it's become more difficult for them to get their games out to many stores.

I might add - to me, the digital PC game industry seems very much aimed at the opposite demographic from the ND players. I'm sure there's certainly an overlap between those who play...well, insert whatever multiplayer first-person shooter or multiplayer RPG or multiplayer whatever here...but I don't think the average PC gamer is going to look at ND and feel remotely interested. Similarly, I don't think many of the ND gamers are going to look at something like Overwatch (another one of those good ol' multiplayer first-person shooters) and feel remotely interested, or even have the capability to play (as I've said many a time, I'm unable to play virtually any brand-new games outside of ND because of graphical requirements, and I don't have the money to go out and craft a gaming PC like so many folks do). The ND games have always filled a very specific niche. I don't think they even overlap with other so-called "walking simulators" outside of gameplay style. So my point is, I'm not entirely sure if ND would see much more popularity if it tried to become more digitally oriented. (Maybe there'd be more Youtubers playing the games, but that might just result in fun being poked at how silly they can be sometimes, and not really any interest in the actual quality of the series...who knows.)

I appreciate your point of view about wanting physical copies of your games.

I disagree with your assumption that by downloading games developers have "more control" over them. I'm not sure on what you base that charge, but I would like to point out that you have a very small view of the gaming industry as a whole. I'm not sure you are aware that "...multiplayer first-person shooters" games are only a small genre of online gaming.

You should hop over to Big Fish Games to see what types of games are offered there. They release a new title every day of all different types of games, and you'd be hard pressed to find a "multiplayer first-person shooter" game anywhere among the thousands of games they offer. I might point out that that is where I encountered my first Nancy Drew game. After waiting too long for them to offer the new Nancy Drew games, I came over to the Her Interactive website and started purchasing my games from here on the days they were released.

[Mydogtogo]

I beg your pardon if I have misunderstood your point – and I agree with the point I think you made – but I would like to point out that all Nancy Drew titles have digital releases just like any other computer games. I assume when you reference the PC gaming industry you are referring to games released online to be played on a PC or Mac.

I know Her offered physical copies of their games, but I cannot imagine many people paid extra for physical copies when you could immediately download the games upon their release, and I certainly cannot imagine why anyone would want to pay extra to get a physical copy of the games, but to each her own, I suppose.

Why I'd pay extra for a physical copy:

I've been on the internet since approx 97. In that time I've had numerous computers and numerous computer crashes. Many of those wiped my data from my computers, and if I DIDN'T have physical copies of the programs, good luck trying to 1) remember your login/password for a game you bought 10 years ago. 2) Good luck getting into an old email address you gave up 5 years ago and then have to work out "1" as well. 3) Of course there's a flaw with physical games as well, and I met that one several years ago, when a housefire took out every material possession I had, including my comp and all my CDs/DVDs. 4) As with one of the previous posters, some folks just LIKE having real copies. Just like some folks like having real books, rather than digital versions. And in my Mom's case it hurts her eyes to read a digital book (something with the light from the screen) where she has no problem reading a physical book.

So there's just a few reasons, and other folks might have more.

[Mydogtogo]

I appreciate your point of view about wanting physical copies of your games. I disagree with your assumption that by downloading games developers have "more control" over them. I'm not sure on what you base that charge, but I would like to point out that you have a very small view of the gaming industry as a whole. I'm not sure you are aware that "...multiplayer first-person shooters" games are only a small genre of online gaming. You should hop over to Big Fish Games to see what types of games are offered there. They release a new title every day of all different types of games, and you'd be hard pressed to find a "multiplayer first-person shooter" game anywhere among the thousands of games they offer. I might point out that that is where I encountered my first Nancy Drew game. After waiting too long for them to offer the new Nancy Drew games, I came over to the Her Interactive website and started purchasing my games from here on the days they were released.

Well I'm not a game publisher, but I'm a book publisher/author. If you publish through Kindle, they give you a choice of DRM or not. Smashwords is DRM free and can give you a whole bucketload of reasons why that's better.

Basically it does come down to whether you're paranoid that a couple people will manage to read your book/play your game for free. Amazon also insists on not only DRM but also that you use them EXCLUSIVELY as a seller if you want to go Prime.

Yes in a way developers DO have more "control" over their games with downloading. Once you purchase a hard copy you can generally install it on multiple computers. Maybe not all owned by you. The Anti-DRM folks feel that if they like your stuff they'll eventually purchase the next one.

[summersunshine]

Why I'd pay extra for a physical copy:

I've been on the internet since approx 97. In that time I've had numerous computers and numerous computer crashes. Many of those wiped my data from my computers, and if I DIDN'T have physical copies of the programs, good luck trying to 1) remember your login/password for a game you bought 10 years ago. 2) Good luck getting into an old email address you gave up 5 years ago and then have to work out "1" as well. 3) Of course there's a flaw with physical games as well, and I met that one several years ago, when a housefire took out every material possession I had, including my comp and all my CDs/DVDs. 4) As with one of the previous posters, some folks just LIKE having real copies. Just like some folks like having real books, rather than digital versions. And in my Mom's case it hurts her eyes to read a digital book (something with the light from the screen) where she has no problem reading a physical book.

So there's just a few reasons, and other folks might have more.

One more reason physical copies are wonderful to have: The newer ones are for either PC or Mac. The last time I bought a new computer, I bought a Mac instead of a PC like I had done previously but I could still play the newer games (before I figured out how to play the older ones on my Mac). If you purchase a digital copy you have to choose between operating systems.